Rio 3: Remastered (Scary Hours Collection)
by Digital Riot
Summary: This is a story of a very long journey. Blu and a new acquaintance get lost deep inside of the Amazon and they must find their way back home. Blu must work together with this new bird and meet new friends along the way. they must get back home. Before something else gets them.
1. I'm Back

**Hi! It's me, I haven't been on this part of fanfiction for a while (I was drawn in by Starbound), but I'm back and hopefully with better writing skills than when** **I left. Now this story is literally me, rewriting all of Rio 3. That's right, all 28,360 words are going to be changed or edited in some way. Now the reason I am doing this? Rio 3 was, a horrorfest to say the least. My complete lack of writing skills made it at times so cringe-worthy that even I can't read the whole thing. Some of you guys liked it (I hope) but most didn't.**

 **And besides the lack of actual talent for writing that I had, even at times where the story actually was good, it was difficult to understand. And I don't mean the use of broken English or where the words don't make sense, but everything was so bunched together that it made everything difficult to read. Here's an example. (** _ **Whoop-de-doo**_ **!)**

"Rio 3, a prediction of the movie

Blu had awoken to a start. A loud crash noise could be heard outside if his nest followed by screaming from what sounds like a crossover between a chicken getting hit by a truck or a rat getting sprayed in the face with pepper spray. Blu walked over to the entrance of his hollow, Jewel and the kids had went to stay by Eduardo's hollow to spend time with him and he had the entire hollow to himself. "Please you're making too much noise " said half awake in no general direction. He saw a macaw lying on his tree trunk rubbing his sore head. "jeez, maybe if you put your hollow in a different place you wouldn't have gotten awoken" the bird said with absolutely no hint of sarcasm in his voice. Blu finally realizing the situation (since he had been half asleep for pretty much the entire experience) flew down to make sure this guy was all right. "are you okay" Blu asked, "yeah I'm fine" the bird said. Upon observing the bird Blu realized that the bird was about the same height as him and had the same neck ruffle of feathers as he had, and the three feathers on the top of his head. Realizing he looked almost exactly like him. Except this bird was green with red circles around his eyes.

 **See what I mean? At times, when chapters exceeded over 1k words, my story ended up looking like an entire colony of ants were put on a blank sheet of paper, and then smashed with a hammer. It was a slugfest and in the worst of ways. So in order to redeem myself as a writer that is worthy of being able to post stories on this site, I will re-write the ENTIRE STORY (I am not looking forward to it).**

 **What will be different? Well, I'm going to warn you before you read this story. The plot is going to be changed, almost completely. Blu is still going to be lost thousands of miles away from home with no clear way back, that's will remain the same. But a lot of characters from the old story, are going to get the axe. A lot of events from the old story are going away too. And the plot will be radically different. It's still going to be primarily humorous (I mean it wouldn't be a story from me if it wasn't funny in some way) but it isn't going to be as, how do I say it?**

 **Weird I guess?**

 **I don't have a written plan for this story. I'm just going to write as ideas come along, so this story might be better than Rio 3 or it might be worst, I don't know.**

 **ALSO THANKS FOR 5K VIEWS ON RIO 3. AMAZING.**

 **So, without further delay, I present to you, (oh boy) Rio 3: Remastered. Hope you enjoy.**


	2. Diante

The Amazon. Is there a place like it? The most unexplored parts of the known world lie underneath the dense rainforest of its canopy. And probably for the better.

Blu, Jewel and all their children lived happily in this place. All of them resting as a single family inside their peaceful hollow.

Peaceful until a loud thump shook the tree, and the sound of searing pain came from down below.

Blu was the first to hear it, he woke up, carefully dancing around his sleeping wife, and making sure that he didn't wake up the kids. He made his way to the edge of the hollow and peered outside.

"Please, can you turn it down? I'm trying to sleep!" Blu complained, to whoever it was outside. No response from the stranger. Blu flew down to make sure he was alright.

The stranger was a bizarre colour, a green colour mostly with red circles around the eyes. Still disgruntled, blue helped him up. Immediately the stranger looked rather familiar, like somebody he saw before.

"Thank you for helping me up," said the stranger, "But you yelling at me was a bit unnecessary, don't you think?"

"You weren't the one who was woken up from a peaceful sleep, you know. Watch where you are flying!" Blu retorted

"Whatever, look I don't have time for this so if you don't mind will you-"the stranger finally looked at Blu's face and recognized something. He froze for just a minute and then seemed to lose his train of thought.

"What? Is something wrong?" Blu asked as the stranger began circling around him, trying to identify him.

"You look almost exactly like me." The stranger said after a while.

It was true. They were both a different colour (Blu being a royal blue and the stranger being a green and red mix), but they shared almost all the same features. The same ruffle of feathers at the back of the neck, the same beak shape, even the three little feathers on the back of the head was the same.

"The names Diante by the way." Diante stretched out his wing, Blu shook his wing.

"I'm Blu."

"Oh, I know. What's your name?"

 _Here we go again_ , thought Blu.

"No that's my name."

"What?"

"Blu"

"But that's a colour"

"But that's also my name"

"That's a pretty stupid name."

Blu rolled his eyes.

"I mean, who names their child after a colour. Like you hatched out of an egg and your parents were so blank minded that they saw you and named you off the first thing they saw."

"My parents didn't name me." Blu protested. Diante looked really confused.

"Then…who did?" Diante asked.

"Look it doesn't matter. Just go home okay?" Blu turned his back and was about to fly back up to his hollow. But his wife woke up and was looking at the both of them from the opening.

"Blu what's going on down there?" she asked, her sleepy eyes barely open.

"Nothing sweetheart. Someone just lost his way, isn't that right?" Blu glanced over at Diante.

No response.

"Jewel?" Blu looked up and Jewel seemed to be attentive all of the sudden, her eyes wide open at the stranger. She stood up and flew down to see him up close. Blu was all the more confused as Diante had the same look. They both gazed at each other for what seemed like an eternity.

"J-Jewel", Diante started.

"I never thought I would see you again", said Jewel.

 _Not again, these two used to be in love too?_ Thought Blu in his head.

"Me neither", suddenly Diante's facial expression changed. An angry look on his face came about, as he turned his back on Jewel.

"And I remember I hate you!"

 _Oh, so I was wrong_

"I do too!" Jewel also yelled at Diante.

Blu edged over to the duo and tried to convince them to talk to each other. Nothing is more unbearable than seeing two people fight and knowing one of them. Maybe helping them solve their problems would turn out for the better?

"Okay. Why don't we just talk it out? Let's all just try and be friends?" Blu put a wing over both of them.

"NO!" both yelled.

"Please?"

"Blu I would love to, but him. He is not even capable of reasoning!" Jewel accused Diante.

"Oh am I? Well, you aren't a perfect angel yourself, you know." Diante retorted

"At least I didn't leave you to die in a fire!" Jewel said, in a low sad tone.

Diante froze in his place. He slowly began crying, tears running down his face. Immediately he took off flying in some other direction.

Blu watched as the bird disappeared behind the tree line. He turned to see Jewel. Sad as ever.

"You know he's gone now. You can stop scowling." Blu said to her.

"Blu next time, stay out of my personal past. Please?" Jewel went and flew back up to her hollow.

 _Today is going to be a long day_ , Blu thought as he joined her inside.


	3. The Night

The pit of doom usually is a place of war. A place of terror and weeping. But its also a place of redemption and glory and honor.

The pit of doom is a place of happiness and sorrow. Friendship and hatred. And most importantly of all, Football .

Football matches were always held there. Inspiring all of these different kinds of feelings. Ever think that a innocent game of soccer could never inspire such emotions, think again.

Entire wars could be fought over a simple game of soccer. And they were fought. But that's what Humans do, who are already violent in nature.

To the birds, soccer itself was the war and the battle. Which is why Blu's humiliation. In the Pit of Doom was such a horrendous one.

A party was being held there and all the Spix Macaws were invited.

But Blu didn't feel invited. In fact he felt unwelcome. He would occasionally have nightmares about him being humiliated in front of that large crowd of people. Nightmares about Jewel and his family leaving and forever hating him because of that. Of course this is beyond reason, his family loved him and just because he lost a innocent soccer game doesn't mean much.

Right?

"Jewel I really want to go, b-but I can't", Blu argued as his wife tried to drag him to the event.

"Why? It'll be fun! Just you and me, we could dance together and meet up with new friends."

"But I really can't!"

Jewel gave Blu a exasperated look.

"Why?" Jewel was growing tired of this.

"It's because of that stupid soccer game!" At this Jewel rolled her eyes and hugged her husband.

"Blu, that was long in the past. Nobody remembers that. And even if somebody does, how much good have you done in comparison to the tribe?"

Blu wasn't convinced.

"Embarrassment follows you no matter who your with or how long ago it has happened Jewel."

"Ok soccer isn't your thing. So what? Anyway if the tribe still remembered that wouldn't you get pushed around for it while your among them outside the pit?" Jewel did make a good point. But then she said something that might've ruined it all.

"What's the worst that could happen?"

Blu's imagination

Blu is dancing with Jewel, flying with her in the air among various other Spix macaws.

"Excuse for just one second Jewel. I need something to drink." Blu said, letting go of his wife's wing.

"Okay. But don't take too long." Jewel said playfully.

Blu approached the drink bar, and behind the counter a red macaw was giving out drinks. He looked a Blu suspiciously as he approached the counter.

"Hey, you!" The macaw said. Blu turned to him alarmed.

"Aren't you the idiot who made that own goal in soccer," He asked.

Blu became extremely nervous. His wings trembled and his voice shook.

"U-uh. Well. Yeah." Blu nervously said.

"Hey everybody. This is the idiot that got that own goal !" The red macaw pointed at him. Everybody turned around and looked at him. Stopping their own romantic dance, eating or whatever just to see what the macaw was talking about. And when they focused on Blu, they wouldn't let go.

Almost at once everybody started laughing. Pointed at Blu, hysterical. Everybody. They were unrelentless. People shouting 'You Fool!' and 'Don't let the door hit you on the way out'. Some extreme soccer fans shouted mean words at him, and swore at him. The world seemed to spin around d Blu. Until he found Jewel, and his heart broke.

She had the most pained and embarrassed expression on her face. Wings covering her face and her eyes closed. It hurt him.

Suddenly, the red macaw grabbed him by the wings and pinned him down.

"Hey, lets get him!" some people yelled. At least five birds all beat up and punched Blu. Ruthlessly, while the audience even further burned in laughter. The greatest entertainment they've had their whole lives. Nobody could forget this.

When the birds finally had enough with beating Blu up, they dragged him outside and threw him in the mud. The rain pouring harder than ever. Blu could still hear the laughter of the hundreds of birds inside.

Back to reality

"That's the worst that could happen." Blu muttered.

"I assure you, that won't happen. I wouldn't stand there and just watch you get embarrassed like that, And hurt. I would try my best to protect you. You know that." Jewel said.

Jewel hugged Blu closer to her. Feeling the warmth and comfort of her changed Blu's mind.

She is right. Besides, people aren't savages. They have morals. Blu gained a wind of confodence.

"You're right. I'll go with you, I won't let my past get the best of me!" Blu said.

Jewel was bewildered by this, and she hugged Blu even tighter and kissed his cheek.

"We are going to have so much fun!" Jewel almost yelled in excitement.

The party was the biggest Blu ever attended. Music, dance, food, party games, colorful lights (how the birds did that, is a mystery), everything.

The pair of lovebirds brought their children, but they already peeled off to go and play with their own friends. It would've been useless to try and find them there. Too many birds, it want like they could get hurt. It was a big party, but it was kid-friendly.

Blu and Jewel met different birds around and told jokes, chatted and just had a good time. Then a certain song that they hath knew all to well played.

Say you, say me! Blu led Jewel onto the dancefloor.

"Remember this song when we first met?" Blu asked Jewel.

"I remember. That time you tried to kiss me when we barely knee each other?" Jewel teased Blu.

Blu felt his face get hot, recalling the embarrassing experience.

"Yeah. That." Blu now liked the memory a little less. But they still danced to it.

"Maybe, I could fix that kiss." Jewel said smooth.

"That would be nice," The two leaned in for a kiss. A long Romantic one, as they danced to the music. A nice pleasant one.

They danced throughout the rest of the song.

The party lasted until the strike of midnight. And everybody left the pit of doom. The couple got their kids together, all three of them this time, and they were about to fly home.

But while they were flying, Jewel spotted someone on the ground.

"Blu, can you wait here for one second, I have to go speak to somebody." Jewel seemed a little nervous, and it set Blu off a little.

"Who?" Blu asked.

"Ah just a friend of mine. I have to ask them a question." Jewel seemed a little more on edge, like she really needed to go. Jewel sensed that Blu saw that, and regained her posture.

"It's nothing to worry about Blu. Really that's all. Tell you what, you could bring the kids back home and I will meet you there." Jewel assured him.

"Oh. Uhhh, okay. That's fine. See you then." Blu said.

Jewel thanked him and descended towards the bank of the Amazon river.

"Come on guys. Lets get back home."

Flying home, Blu was struck with many of the questions children usually ask their mother.

"Dad, did you know that the universe is still expanding by hundreds of billions of miles a second?" Bia asked.

"Dad, what makes the sky blue" Tiago asked.

"Dad, do you know where I can charge my phone?" Carla, technically complained.

"What makes the plants green?"

"How many stars are there?"

"Are we home yet?"

"Where do babies come from?" Tiago asked him. Everybody looked at their father.

"Yeah! Where do they come from?" The girls asked. Blu was already tired from the other questions. He wasn't going to answer that.

"Ask your mother." Blu simply said.

The family got home and the kids went crazy, they were so excited about the party that it was impossible to calm them down.

Blu gave up on trying to put them to sleep. It seemed that they would bounce out of his wigs or talons whenever he tried picking them up.

And when he did manage to tuck them in, they would never stop fooling around.

After the 18th time of telling them that they needed to go to bed, Blu decided enough was enough. Time to use Plan B.

"Bia, Tiago! Give me back my phone!" Carla struggled with her younger Brother and Sister.

"I need it for scientific research!" tried to wrestle the phone out of her siblings grasp.

"And I need it for… stuff… too!" Tiago argued.

"Hey kids, you want to hear a scary story?" Blu turned around, the moon illuminating his back and the shade covering his face.

The kids were silent and Blu couldn't find them.

"I want to hear a story!" Tiago said from the children's nest. Blu turned around shocked to see how fast all three of them went to bed. He had to do a double take just to make sure he wasn't seeing things.

"Wow!" Blu let slip from his beak.

"Okay, are you guys ready to hear the story of Nessie?" Blu spoke in a deep and dark tone.

Silence from the children.

"Prepare yourselves. Nessie was a normal bird just like any other. Just like me. She loved to fly around and enjoy the freedom of flight. But she never listened to any one."

The children looked on.

"People always told her that she should never fly outside after midnight. Because midnight is the hour of the dead. When they come and haunt the living, those who are still awake anyway. Those stupid enough to to wander outside during the midnight hour would find themselves tormented by ghouls and spirits somebody could only describe as-" Blu turned his back and chuckled to himself.

"Well. They wouldn't be able to describe them. By the time they even have the chance to see them. They would have joined the dead in their nightly rampage."

"But Nessie never listened to their warnings. She wasn't trying to be rebellious but she just didn't believe them. She thought they were just old wives tales or just the stuff of mythology and legend. Nothing but scary stories just to scare the kids. She went outside on midnight and nothing happened, and she did it again the next night. And again. She shook off the legend. Nothing happened to her."

"So there wasn't a ghost after all?" Carla asked.

"I didn't say that. But she thought so in the back of her mind. One night she was bold and went into the swamplands. A highly superstitious area. She couldn't help herself. It was as if the swamp called her into the area. She flew around dodging thick moss and tree branches. The smell of muggy water hung dense in the air. It made it hard to fly for a long time. She stopped to rest for a while, but the more she tried to breathe fresh air the faster the air seemed to escape her." Blu continued.

"The swamp air was too thick and it was a hot night. When she finally did get her breath, she was able to see around. And she found herself lost. The endless swamp looked the same everywhere. The green algae and moss hid everything from sight. She decided that she would camp there until dawn. But as she was picking the right tree she heard something." Blu crunched the twigs and leaves of the nest to simulate the sound.

"She turned around and found nobody there. Not a living soul. She went back to business and out of the corner of her eye she saw two red dots. In the shadows, hidden by the moss and overgrowth of the swamp. She stared at them for a second and saw that those weren't dots. The lights blinked and then vanished." The kids hid themselves further under their leaf blanket.

"She felt something warm on her back. As she turned around, frightened, the red dots were there again. This time right in front of her. A dark figure loomed over her, the owner of the red eyes. Nessie was frozen in fear. The figure let out a crooked smile full of teeth. Each one sharp as a knife. The feathers of its last meal stuck in its teeth.

'Its past midnight. What are you doing out here?' the creature asked. Nessie had no response. The creature opened its mouth, the shark teeth splitting open to reveal a deep dark tunnel. Nessie wanted to run so badly. But her muscles were frozen she couldn't move. The creature lowered its mouth over and ate everything. Nothing was left. Some people say that she still wanders inside the swamplands warning people of the red eyed monster that lurked at midnight."

The children turned into little balls of fear looking at their father. Each one of them so silent you could hear a pin drop.

Perhaps Blu's plan worked a little too well. After trying to go back to his nest at the entrance of the hollow, the kids would become hysterical. Begging their father not to leave.

"Guys I'm going to bed. I am going to be right next to you!" Blu trying to reason with his kids.

"But we don't want you to get eaten by the red eyed monster!" all three chimed in. Even Carla who wasn't usually scared by ghost stories was acting like she just lived one.

"Guys, the red eyed monster isn't real. And if he was, I would do everything in my power to make sure he doesn't lay a finger on any of you. I love you guys, and I speak for your mother too. That's why we sleep at the entrance of the hollow. Just so nothing happens to you. We love you, and there's nothing in this world a red eyed monster can do to hurt you." Blu said to the kids. With that he hugged and kissed them all goodnight.

Speaking of Jewel, where is she? Blu thought as he settled in bed. She should've came back home by now.

Blu decided to wait a little longer for her, but ten minutes passed with no sign of her. Blu got up and was about to go take off. Just to make sure she was okay. But he heard a small voice from behind him.

"Dad, where are you going?" one of the triplets asked. Blu hoped to sneak out and come back in without them noticing. He should only be gone for five minutes at the least.

"Uh, I'm going outside." Blu put a wing over his beak to stop himself from staying more.

"But you said bad things happen to birds who go out a midnight."

Blu fell silent for a while.

"I really need to go. Listen, when I come back I promise you, me and your mother will get you something nice. Alright? A toy maybe." Blu tried to calm the younger of his two daughters.

"A book?"

"The best one I can find."

" I love you Dad."

"I love you too Bia."

Blu took off outside. But before he went looking for Jewel, he had to make sure his kids were watched over. He stopped by his neighbors house and asked them. The mother agreed, she baby sat the children while Blu and Jewel were gone before.

Blu flew around back to the bank of the Amazon. He found Jewel right at the same spot as she left. But she was doing something. She was still talking to somebody. Looks like she was yelling at them. Her eyes were narrowed and her feathers fluffed.

Blu descended and saw Jewel, arguing with the other person.

"I just came here to apologize," She said to the other, "Listen I have to go home. My family is probably waiting!"

"Listen Jewel, I'm sorry too. But you knew back then and you do now. I didn't know how I could have stopped them. So I left you there." Blu recognized the other voice as Diante.

Eavesdropping, Blu hid in a bush with a good view of the two of them.

"But you didn't even look back! If Roberto hadn't gotten me out of there I would've died. If Roberto could help me why couldn't you?"

Blu felt the branches of the bush give way to his weight, and he fell to the ground in front of both of them.

Both of the birds looking at Blu and were startled in fear. But when they saw it was only him they were relieved. But Jewel was angry at him.

"Blu, what are you doing here?" Jewel hissed at him.

"Oh,me. Well I was just looking for you. Its almost half past the hour, I was worried for you." Blu said.

"Blu, I'm okay. I'm more worried for you trying to look for me and get hurt yourself." Jewel went up and hugged Blu.

"Yeah, go run off with your husband. Leave me here." Diante said as he began walking away.

Jewel was about to say something back but Blu did it for her.

"You don't have any right to speak to her like that!" Both Diante and Jewel were shocked as they looked at him.

Jewel would do the same for me if I was being humiliated or hurt by someone. It's my job to do the same.

"Blu!" Jewel elbowed (I think birds have elbows) Blu in the side.

"Don't get involved" He remembered Jewel say from yesterday.

But she is part of my family. I have to do all I can to protect my family. Just like I promised the kids. Right?

Blu ignored Jewel and advanced further on Diante.

"Listen, I don't know who you are, but this ends here. You apologize to her, now!" Blu said.

"Make me!" Diante screeched.

Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, Blu found himself in a actually fight. For the first time in his life somebody else was hitting him and he had to hit back. Jewel tried to stop the two, throwing herself in between the two birds, but Diante had a good grasp on Blu. And he wasn't letting go.

Their balance faltered and both Blu and Diante rolled down a little hill into the bank of the Amazon. Jewel, desperate to save them (or at least Blu) tried grabbing them, but they were moving too fast.

"Ah!" they both yelled out as the current of the river dragged them along. Blu panicked, his heart beating a faster than ever. He was disoriented, his head occasionally dipping under the water, sometimes he inhaled a little of the water and it burned his lungs and gave him a nasty hheadache.

Jewel tried chasing both of them but ran into a tree. She fell to the ground and was knocked to the ground in pain.

Blu and Diante were both still trying to fight the current but were hit in the head by a tree branch. Blu blacked out.


	4. What a day

When Jewel finally came to, it was daybreak. She tried to get up but pain was widespread. She held her head for a minute, just to make the pain stop.

She stood up finally and remembered the events from last night. She immediately started to panic, she thought on what to do. Either pursue Blu herself, or go get help.

Eduardo will know what to do. Immediately she flew over to his nest.

Meanwhile, Blu and Diane were still floating in the river. Diante gained consciousness first and dragged Blu to shore.

Blu woke up a few minutes later coughing up water. When his coughing fit wow finished he looked up at Diante, who had his back turned a few feet away.

"Thanks." Blu muttered out.

"I don't want to see you vomit all over the floor. That's disgusting. "

"Not about that. Thanks for getting me out the river."

Diante muttered something under his breath Blu couldn't understand.

After a few minutes, Blu tried to figure out where they were, no avail. The jungle was the same everywhere. Nothing but green flat land, a few mountains and hills were strewn about, and the river.

"Now look what you got us in!" Diante said, still on the forest floor.

"What I did? You were the one who jumped on my and Jewel in the first place! You pushed me into the river!"

"Maybe if you hadn't been eavesdropping on us none of this would've happened!"

"That's my wife, I have to know what is happening," Blu paused "how are we supposed to get back home now?"

"That's a problem you are going to have to figure out. I for one, am going to walk upstream from the river."

"That sounds like the best option. Let's go." Blu took off, and he hovered just above the tree line. He noticed Diante wasn't with him, he spotted him literally walking along the forest floor.

Blu flew back down to see what happened.

"How come you aren't following me?" He asked.

"In case you haven't noticed I cant," Diante held up his wing. It took a Blu a minute to see what was wrong. The way Diante's wing was bent at the weirdest point threw Blu off. Until he realized what he was looking at.

Disgusted he looked away and asked Diante to hide his wing.

"I don't know how it broke. But it did, and I cant do much about it. So I have to walk."

Its been a long time since Blu learned how to fly. And he had grown used to it, Blu didn't think he could stand walking all the way back home. Who knew how far they were? Especially with this nuisance to carry with him. But Blu figured if he needed to make the trip, two brains were better than one.

Blu followed Diante and began walking. Clearly Diante noticed but didn't comment, until fifteen minutes later.

"How come you are following me? I thought you wanted to go home?"

"I do, but I'm not going to do this alone. Who knows how far it is back."

"I will only slow you down," Diante dismissed Blu's statement.

"At least you want have to worry about being alone, or eaten."

"If a leopard came out of the bushes right now, and tried to eat me, what would you do about it?" Diante asked.

"Absolutely nothing. But if there was a chance I could get you out without getting hurt myself I would take it." Blu knew that Diante needed him. If they wanted to get back home together

"Fine, come with me. But this doesn't mean we are friends or anything. Understand?"

Blu nodded his head.

"Good." And with that they were off.

After receiving news of this Eduardo nearly choked.

"Diante. I haven't heard about him for years. And he pushed Blu into the river?" He asked Jewel.

"Yes, and he fell in too. Dad, just please tell me you are going to find Blu." Jewel said nearly in tears.

"Don't worry, we are going to find him. I would anything for you dear." Eduardo said to his daughter.

Jewel was a little relieved but still anxious. Her father had managed to calm her down a little.

"Stay here, I'm going to get a bunch of people to find him. The best of the best. They will find him, darling." With that he kissed the top of her head and flew away.

Jewel, alone, had time to reflect on what happened. The headache of hers simply would not go away. And her feelings were shattered.

Anger grew inside, a burning hatred for Diante. As soon as I see him again, I will kill him Jewel thought silently. She knew she wouldn't, but if someone gave her the offer, she would gladly take it.

She decided to fly back to the nest, when she realized she had completely forgotten about her children. She rushed back to her nest to see another bird inside.

"Um, who are you?" she asked when she saw the other bird. A female macaw tending to her children was definitely weird.

"Oh, I'm the next door neighbor. Your Husband asked me to babysit the children while he went to find you. When he didn't come back I knew it was serious so I stayed. Hope I'm not intruding or anything."

Jewel was already in a bad mood. But the lady was kind so she tried to act polite too.

"Oh, it's not a big deal. Thank you." Jewel said.

The other lady walked out but turned around before she flew off.

"Do oh mind if I ask, what happened?"

Jewel didn't feel like explaining it now so she dismissed the question. The lady flew off back to her own home.

Jewel walked to see all three of her children sleeping sound. It warmed her heart.

But that burning hatred and pain of what happened kept bringing her mood down. Silently, she sat curses whenever she thought of him. She hoped Blu would get back home safe. Then her attention changed, from her hatred towards Diante toward her love for Blu.

She cried a little bit as she tried to relax at the entrance of the hollow. It was times like this when Blu would wrap his wing around her and make her feel better. But he was gone now.

What a day, she thought.


	5. Captured

**Hello everybody. This is the 4th chapter of the book and I just wanted to say thank you for nearly 300 views in under a month. This is probably the fastest story to reach such a level and I wanted to say thank you. Now about the story itself, a new character will be making his debut, Jackson. For those who've read Rio 3, Jackson is basically the tribe detective and he is trying to find Blu and bring him back to Jewel while Roberto tries to stop him. I was debating on whether or not to keep him, but I think the story is better with him. With that out of the way let's continue on with the story.**

"Listen up now. We have a urgent situation," The room was attentive with focus, "Last night Blu and another bird got into a conflict and they both fell into the Amazon. I want you all, to find them alive. Bring them back home safe and sound. Understand?" Eduardo finished.

"Yes sir!" The other five or so birds cheered. Roberto and his crew were all there. But another stranger was among them.

"Roberto! We have a new recruit helping you today. Meet Jackson." The Blu macaw looked up a nodded in consent.

He was a dark blue color, with white feathers around his eyes and covering his jaw.

"In case you didn't know who he was before he is the neighborhood detective. He is experienced and hard-working, I hope you make the best of him. Okay?"

Roberto shot a quick glance at Jackson, then returned to Eduardo.

"Glad to have him, and we will find Blu. There will not be a stone uncovered. I promise, he is like a brother to me." Roberto pledged to Eduardo.

"Good. The other bird you are looking for is Diante…"

Roberto knew who Diante was. Before the loggers came around Diante was a childhood friend of his. His best friend, they would always mess with each other. Roberto, Diante and Jewel all would have the greatest of times together. Until he betrayed them.

"Look, I know what he did all those years ago. And somehow he is back. But you still need to find him like any other bird. I expect both of them back." Eduardo read Roberto's expression.

The group flew out to go and find the duo who were still walking up stream to find their home.

"This is stupid. We have no idea how far away we are from home, we could be walking away for all we know." Blu complained, after landing from another survey of the land.

"You have a better idea?" Diante asked.

Blu remained silent.

"Oh, I didn't think so. So keep walking" Diante began again.

They have been walking for nearly the entire day. And they were both tired. The sun was bright overhead, and the heat of the Amazon was kicking in. They wouldn't be able to walk for much longer.

"We have to rest somewhere. How about here under this tree?"

"No."

"Okay, how about this tree?"

"No."

"This one?"

"I'm not stopping. We have to cover as much ground as possible."

"But if we keep going our legs will fall off!"

"So you use your legs as picks, and you drag yourself across the floor. You keep moving!"

"So what are we going to do about food?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there! Why, are you hungry?"

"Starving! "

"Alright. Then we stop and look for food. But we eat while we walk. Meet me back here."

The two flew off in search of anything to eat. They found a few things, and they met each other back at the same spot.

"Happy?" Diante asked.

Blu nodded his head while eating a orange.

While they were walking, the two notice something very strange about their surroundings. They heard a soft whispering noise from time to time in the far stretch of the forest, but they assumed it was just the leaves rubbing against each other. Often they would hear the snapping of twigs or branches. Like something was following them.

"You notice anything strange about this place?" Blu asked Diante.

"I was about to ask you the same thing."

"Let's move out of here as fast as possible, what do you say? "

"Agreed."

The two walked faster than before, but they couldn't go too fast. Every step they took hurt them. It sent a shock of pain from the talon straight to the brain, and every now and then they could've sworn they felt something break inside their legs. But still they pushed on. But it wasn't fast enough.

"Get them!" a voice from the depths

They began running but found themselves trapped in a net. They tried escaping but it was too tough. Soon two Humans emerged from the bushes.

"Oh no. Look at these poor birds. They are lost so far from home." The female said.

"Happens all the time with these animals. We will take 'em back to a shelter. They will know what to do with the two." A male voice said.

"Let us out! Please! " the two birds screamed in protest. But no sooner had they been captured, then they were loaded into a crate and put into the back of a truck full of other animals. The engine of the truck roared to life, and the vehicle was off.

"No no no no no no no! This is not good, this is not good at all!" Blu put his wings over his head and paced around the dark cage. The only light came from a barred window of the truck.

Diante did nothing. He sat down and closed his eyes.

Blu looked at him with almost shock.

"How can you just sit down like that! We are being taken away who knows how far away from home. At this rate we will never make it!" Blu yelled at him.

Diante calmly looked up at him.

"You said you wanted to sit down and rest. I'm not stopping you." Diante said as smooth as ever.

Blu stared at him in disbelief. He then jumped on and attacked Diante, starting their second fight.

As they kept hitting each other with their wings and scratching with their talons a unfamiliar voice spoke up.

"Boys! Stop fighting the both of you! Stop it! Can't you see it's miserable enough in here!" Diante and Blu stopped and found where the voice was coming from.

A old hawk was the owner of the voice. He was old and had gray feathers. But he had a strong voice.

"The two of you aren't the only ones on this here vehicle those cursed Humans put us on. The rest of us are more miserable than the two of you combined, and we didn't descend into savage brutes!"

"It wasss bound to happen ssssometime Hank. We don't have privacy, ssssanitation, proper food, anything." A female snake said from a corner.

"It smells disgusting in here. And I think this dog food has gone rancid!" A fox stated from another part of the room.

Soon everybody in the room starting sharing all the bad things of this place. And it all ended up with them crying they won't be able to see their family again.

"Sorry, sir we won't let it happen again. Right Blu?" No answer.

"Blu?"

Blu was sitting down. His face buried in his wings and he was crying. Tears dropped onto the floor, the occasional sniff came from his nose, and tiny whimpering sound came from him.

"Come on. It's not that bad." Diante patted him on the shoulder, to no avail.

"We have food even though it's rancid. Water…" Diante looked at a water bottle attached to the wall. The water inside was a green color and the metal pipe to drink from was rusted.

"Okay we might not have water but we have food. We don't have to worry about being eaten alive, we can sleep all we want. To be honest this is pretty good." Diante was hoping Blu would stop crying but it didn't stop. If anything it made it worst.

"Come on man. Stop crying. Come on. Listen I know it hurts sometimes but you'll get over it. We will find a way to live. I swear you'll get over it." Diante said. Blu stopped crying.

"How can I get over it when I'm separated from my family! I am never going to see the love of my life or my three kids again! They need me. I need them."

Blu didn't cry but still kept his head in his wings.

"Okay. My fault. But listen Blu, if you keep thinking about it, your sadness will get worst. Wishing you were there won't magically teleport you there. If it did nobody would be on this truck right now."

"You don't understand. Unlike you I actually had a life back home." Blu snapped at Diante.

 **That was a lot wasn't it? Be sure to leave a comment and favorite this story (I sound like a YouTuber saying like and subscribe. That's the FFN equivalent of favorite and review I guess) and with that out of the way I am sorry this took a little longer to create. But I've been a bit busy with school work so I have that going for me. But I'll ty and write whenever I can (that is when I'm not reading a different book or playing video games) either way I hope you enjoy this story so far. If you do let me know, or don't if you don't want to.**


	6. Sad and Low

Roberto led his makeshift rescue team downstream of the Amazon. They looked everywhere, from the sky, to the forest floor, and for any trace of Blu and Diante. But they came up with nothing.

"We have to find them fast", said one of the macaws as he came back from searching through marshland not too far away, "It's getting dark. And nobody should be all by themselves at night."

Everybody was tired. They have been looking from about dawn to dusk and their search has been fruitless. Needless to say that the Amazon river is enormous. As the hours ticked by, everybody became sure that the two birds either drowned or were eaten.

But Roberto tried to encourage his team as best he could. He thought of Blu as a close friend and would hate the idea if something happened to him. But then again, if Blu was alive that would most likely mean Diante would be too. And Roberto didn't want to see that traitorous pain in the behind anymore than he would want to see the gaping jaws of a snake. But he had a job to do, and he wasn't one to quit.

Roberto turned to Jackson.

"I know you've done this at least a million times. But you have the eyes of a hawk. You can spot a leaf from the sky a mile up. I am going to need you to fly back up there and see what you can. Okay?"

Jackson nodded, tired, but unwilling to quit, just like Roberto. He took to the skies and flew as high as he could, when he spotted something unusual.

A highway ran through the forest, and cars usually drove through. Jackson didn't understand why, but a particular truck that was driving down peeked his interest. A gray box truck that had a cartoon picture of a cat and dog on the sides and the words "Santuário de animais de Buenos Aires" (The Buenos Aires Animal Sanctuary) .

Jackson couldn't understand human language, but he did know that van was bad news. He met Blu a few times before, and he told Jackson about how a specific group of Humans have protected the land, but other people take and illegally cage animals inside and ship them to other parts of the world. Jackson was fairly sure that this truck might be one of those. He flew back down to Roberto.

"Roberto! Roberto! You'll never believe this! But I think, Blu might be on a human truck going somewhere." Jackson told him.

"What? Show me." Roberto said in disbelief.

The two flew up and Jackson pointed the truck out.

"Those people, they capture birds and sell them. Maybe Blu is one of them on board?" Jackson said.

Roberto didn't want to check. He had a debilitating fear of Humans, and did not want to go near any of their machines. Or instruments of death as Roberto put it.

But then again, his reputation was on the line. He couldn't look like a coward in front of the new recruit. After all he was supposed to be fearless, especially now that his friend is in danger.

"If you want I will go look by myself", Jackson said.

"Uh, lets go together." Roberto said to keep Jackson from knowing of his secret fear.

The two birds took off to try and follow the vehicle, but it was near impossible. It was going way to fast for them to catch up, and other cars on the road made maneuvering hell. And if that wasn't enough, every few minutes the truck would abruptly slow down or stop and the birds following close behind would risk smashing their face against the back of the truck. Eventually the two gave up.

Jackson was still almost one hundred percent sure Blu was onboard. But Roberto wasn't.

"We should follow it." Jackson suggested.

"But we don't even know where its going!" Roberto protested.

"It's going to Buenos Aires."

"What is that?"

Jackson thought about it for a moment.

"I don't know. But that's were it is heading. And if we don't follow it, Blu may be lost forever."

But it would have been impossible to follow. Buenos Aires, the Capital City of Argentina. A city nearly three thousand miles south of Rio, a 32 hour drive by car. And they weren't anywhere near Rio. Not that it would help if they were, Buenos Aires is in a completely different country, so far away.

Meanwhile, back in the tribe, Jewel was doing everything she could to help pass the time. She knew it was unlikely her beloved would be back soon. But she had hope.

Occasionally she would look to the sky, hoping to see Blu return. But he never did. And every time she realized that Blu wasn't coming back home soon, a piece of her died on the inside.

She sat in the hollow, awaiting his return. Trying to keep her spirits up with hopeful and possibly far fetched thoughts in her mind.

I _bet he his returning home right this second, if Roberto hasn't found him already._

Truth is he wasn't even close to home. And as the hours went by that became more evident.

Jewel pressed her mind to continue to think positive.

 _Okay, maybe he got lost on his way back. But he is smart, he would know how to get back. Its getting late, he probably stopped to sleep_.

Jewel knew the chances that Blu was even still alive was low. But she also knew, dwelling on that thought could break her mentally and emotionally.

Occasionally Jewel would think of the reason why Blu was separated from her. And it led to one person, Diante.

Every time she thought of his name she would turn red in fury. If she saw him she would delight herself in his torture.

All kinds of sinister thought entered her mind on how she was going to kill Diante. Ranging from drowning him in the river, to tying him up and leaving him as a delicacy for a hungry panther.

But it wasn't likely Diante would come back.

In the midst of her evil plans she realized that she actually needs Diante now more than ever. Blu was in no way, shape or form fit to survive in the middle of nowhere by himself. But Diante could help him survive, Diante could quite possibly be Blu's only hope at survival.

Jewel thought of it and it made her a little less angry. But she knew Diante as a selfish person, he would possibly sacrifice Blu just to save himself. But then again, he had a heart too. Nigel probably wouldn't do that.

She spent the hours with her children. Trying to make sure they don't know the fate of their father. She would craft ingenious lies.

"Your father went with Linda to Rio. Just to help her in the bookstore. He should be back in a few weeks." Jewel told her children.

"How come he didn't take us?" Tiago complained.

"He thought it would be best to leave you here. You guys seem happy here, he didn't think you would want to go with him."

"But we do!" The three cheered in unison.

"Just before he left, dad told me he would get me a book. The best one he could find. He promised." Bia, her youngest daughter said sadly.

Hearing that made her heart break. Jewel herself couldn't bear the thought of losing Blu, but what about their children? If anybody loved Blu more than her it would be them. They would be heart broken, what would they do without their father.

Jewel hid her face as a tear escaped her eye. She had to keep the act up for as long as possible. For her children's sake.

"Don't worry Bia. Your father never breaks his promises. I bet he is in the bookstore in Rio right now getting you the best book he can find."

She couldn't have been further from the truth. Blu was currently on a 30 hour trip, in the back of truck.

It was driving him insane. He kept on thinking about his family. Who would take care of them when he was gone? Jewel was a really strong woman, but even she can't take care of three kids by herself. He knew Roberto would help. But he knew Roberto couldn't replace Blu. Not one hundred percent.

He just wished Roberto loved Jewel and the kids as much as him. And that Roberto didn't try and touch her, _Intimately_.

He got that thought out of his head. Blu knew that the truck was going far, far away. It would be months, if not, years until Blu ever saw them.

He looked at Diante, who wasn't too happy either. The rest of the animals onboard were just as miserable.

He found a few friends who he made small talk with. Leia the Garden Snake, Hank the Peregrine Falcon, and Davi A Cockatiel.

All of them recounted memories of their past. A lot just gave in to the thought that they would never see their family again. They sat inside their cages, slumped over. There are those who just gave up on life.

Blu wasn't going to let himself become one of them, he was determined to find his family.

"Boy I tell you, you are one Naïve bird." Hank told him.

"What makes you say that?" Blu asked.

" _What makes you_ , think you will see them again?" Hank retorted.

"I will find them. I can't be lost in some cage forever. This truck will stop eventually. And that's when I will break free!"

Hank burst out laughing.

"Boy I tell you, you got some nerve talking like that! But I like it. You know these Humans will shoot ya down before you even make a few feet."

"Hank, If he wantsss to sssee his family again, by all meansss we sshhould help him. Not put him down." Leia said.

"The both of you are something else. A snake and a parrot are teaming up against Humans to get home. Never in my 60 years of life have I ever heard something so audacious, so stupid. But it sure as hell is funny." Hank was still laughing himself to death.

"Blu, don't lisssten to him. If you have the courage to go and find your family, then do it. Some of usss (she glances at Hank) are too much of a coward to do it." Leia assured him.

Blu again glanced over at Diante who said nothing the whole time.

"You want to join me?" Blu asked him.

"No." Diante said flatly.

"Come on! Why do you have to be so difficult?"

"I'm not trying to be. I agree with Hank, there is no way we were getting past those humans if we aren't in a body bag. And how the hell are we supposed to find our way back home now?" Diante said.

"Now there is a boy with common sense." Hank said.

"It's better if we die trying to find our way home than give up and never know if we could have succeeded!" Blu tried his best to convince Diante, but it didn't work.

"For what? I go back home and everybody hates me. That precious wife of yours probably has a bounty on my head. I don't wanna go back and be humiliated, hurt or killed." Diante knew Jewel would never let him live in peace after this. He wasn't going to go back home and face her. She was smaller and a bit weaker than Diante, but that doesn't mean someone else will kill him for her.

Blu however had to think. How was he going to get home with out Diante? Maybe Leia would help him, but he was sure that if she ever gets hungry, Blu would be her first choice for a meal. She is a snake and he is a bird, Snakes eat birds. He can't trust her just yet. Hank was out of the question.

So there he was, laying out plans for his grand escape. He had to get back home, or else he would be lost forever.


	7. Escape?

**Hey guys. I just wanted to come here and say thank you for 400 views. I think this story is going in the right direction, finally. I had an idea for Diante singing like Imagine Dragons or something like that, but I don't know about that. I will leave that up to you to decide. And I also wanted some feedback on how the story is compared to the other Rio 3. Be critical, but not mean. Honest, but not hurtful. I like it when people tell me what needs to be done. With that i introduce our next chapter.**

Nearly two days passed, Blu counted in his head how many times the truck stopped at gas stations, mom and pop restaurants, and other such things. They couldn't have been far from the destination now

Both Blu and Diante were tired of sitting in the cage. It was killing them, quite literally too. Both Diante and Blu felt sick and tired. But Blu knew the van was goanna stop soon.

A few hours later the van came to a screeching halt. The back doors of the van were opened and fresh air filled the damp and stuffy compartment. Two Humans stepped inside and started unloading crates of animals.

Blu was excited, he could finally get the chance to escape. But he still had to wait.

The humans finally picked up his cage and as they took him out the truck, he was nearly blinded by the sunshine. When his eyes finally adjusted he took in his surroundings.

A massive city, the likes of which he compared to Rio. He looked around for any indication of where he is. He saw the logo on the side of the truck, he recognized it as Spanish.

Jewel taught him Portuguese while he was with her. How much different could Portuguese be from Spanish?

Very, apparently. Blu struggled but he understood what he needed. Buenos Aires was obvious.

Blu was relieved to finally know where he was. But then it struck him.

Buenos Aires is no where near anywhere he could think of. Even Rio was so far away. Blu was saddened, how was he going to get home now.

The Human loaded Blu and Diante into a room inside what seemed to be a animal shelter. Workers paced back and forth all around as they carried all kinds of animals. Weasels, Cats, Bats, Dogs, Monkeys, Birds, so many different animals all in one building. The worker carried the cages into a room labeled

"Ingesta de animales" It read in Spanish.

Under it, in English, "Animal Intake".

The worker opened a door into a room with bright light. It was small, already a bunch of other crates full of animals were inside.

"Solo te quedarás aquí por un tiempo." (You will only stay here for a while), The worker said in Spanish. He put the cage onto of another and left the room.

Blu immediately started to look for a way out. Their was a simple lock on the cage that could be opened easily, a open vent hung in the roof. A idea popped into his head.

He started trying to pick the lock when he stopped.

 _What am I doing? I can't leave him here by himself_. Blu looked behind him at Diante, who was busy plucking off lose feathers from himself.

 _Or maybe I could_. Blu was just about tired of Diante. And he hated to say it, but he would need his help. Blu closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and turned to face Diante.

"Do you want to come with me?" Blu blurted out.

Diante looked at Blu.

"Where?" He asked.

"Home."

"Nah."

Blu expected Diante to say that. He planned to leave just after. But he didn't.

"Come on. You can't just stay here!" Blu tried to persuade Diante.

"Why not? We have been here for nearly two days. I could stay here for more."

"But just because you can, doesn't mean you should."

"Why do care so much about me? Why don't you just leave? I thought you hated me." Diante turned his back to Blu.

"I do. But I'm not cruel. I won't leave you here. And if you think you could possibly survive in here, this…", Blu looked around the cage, "Is no way to live. You will die in here before the turn of the month."

"And then what do we do when we get outside, huh? We escape to the jungle and where do we go? I might die here in a month but we might get eaten before an hour comes out there."

"So you would rather sit here in your own filth and slowly die, rather than try and go home."

"I have no home," Diante said in a sad tone, " Everybody in the village hates me. I can't live someplace, no matter where I go people try and find ways to kill me and hurt me in someway. Roberto, Eduardo, Jewel. I even managed to piss Felipe off before and I don't even know how!"

Diante slumped over.

"Face it. No matter where I am, people naturally hate me. What's the point of going home? I would rather die here!" Diante said.

Blu remembered when he felt that same way. After he lost that match in the pit of doom he felt he had nobody who loved him. Not even Jewel. But in reality Jewel loved him no matter what, but Diante…

Diante has nobody. Why should he go back home? All that is going to happen is him being pained and hurt.

 _Maybe it is best if I leave him here. For his sake._ Blu thought to himself.

But he realized that he couldn't. He needs Diante. Eduardo's survival training was good, but it didn't come close to what he actually needs to survive. Diante has been in the woods for far longer. He was battle worn, a veteran at surviving on his own. He would be essential to Blu's survival.

Somewhere in that emotionally exhausted body of Diante, there was a heart. Diante wouldn't let Blu go outside just to die. Right?

"Listen…" Blu breathed in. Somewhat pained about what he was about to say. Diante looked at him with interest.

"I will make you a deal you can't refuse. You help me, get back home safe. And then when you get home I will personally see to it that you are remembered as the person who saved me. That you led me home. Everybody likes a hero."

Diante thought about it.

"Tempting indeed. But I still have to see the faces of all those people I betrayed. And they will still remember it. People don't forget the screwed up past of a hero. They just ignore it until he messes up again, then they exclude him for good." Diante said.

 _Why does he have to be right? Why does that make sense?_ Blu cried out in his head.

"Then you can leave the tribe. I will help you find the a hollow somewhere inside outside of the tribe. And I promise to always tell about the heroic thing you did of getting me out of here. People will soon start to forget who you are but they will remember that one act." Blu tried with all his might, but Diante didn't answer.

Blu knew that the humans would be coming soon. And when they do his chance might be gone. He had to hurry.

Blu opened the cage door and climbed out. He left it open and flew into the ventilation system.

* * *

Aunt Mimi came to Jewels hollow. To comfort her. Eduardo was there too.

"Don't worry. I'm sure Blu will be back. It has only been two days. I've seen people get lost down the river hundreds of times and they came back after about a week or two. He will be fine." Aunt Mimi wasn't lying. Plenty of people fell down the river and ended up miles away from home. Almost all of them got back home.

But those cases were almost always in broad daylight. The bird was conscious and knew how far they floated downstream, and they were never captured by humans.

Aunt Mimi didn't know of the last factor.

"She is right, sweetheart. Just give it some time. I knew he wasn't going to come back any time soon. Its Naïve to think he would be back before a week. Wishful thinking at most."

They tried their best to soothe her but Jewel kept crying. She tried her best not to led melancholy take control, but there was nothing else to think of. And soon she let it slip through her emotional barrier.

The kids told Aunt Mimi and Eduardo soon after, when they found their mother crying herself to death on the floor.

The triplets were told to stay at Roberto's nest, who was more than positive that Blu died. But Roberto tried his best not to tell the kids of their fathers fate.

Everybody was acting strange lately. The kids never saw their mother in this state of helplessness before, Eduardo and Roberto both just told them not to worry about their father. And Aunt Mimi just said she didn't know anything.

They knew something happened to their dad. And they wanted to find out.

"Maybe he got eaten by the red eyed monster?" Tiago added his conclusion.

"What red-eyed monster?" Bia asked.

"Remember, the story that dad told the very day he disappeared? About Nessie, and how she ventured out into the swampland after midnight?"

"That's just a story. Nessie and the monster aren't real!" Bia assured her little brother.

"So it's just a coincidence that dad disappeared exactly after he told the story? And that he disappeared at midnight? And that he went outside exactly when he said not to or you could be eaten alive?" Tiago made sure he go his point across.

But the sisters weren't having it.

"While that is strange, it could be nothing more than just that. A coincidence. We have to be rational here." Bia protested.

"But the story aligns exactly to what happened to dad. He is probably lost somewhere in the marshland. And then a giant monster got him!" Tiago argued.

The two went on like this for some time. Carla was just amused at how her siblings fought. The over dramatic conspiracy making Tiago and his sister, a extremely rational bookworm Bia.

Carla decided to stop the two before serious damage was made.

"Stop it, the both of you! Now Tiago if dad was eaten by a monster why didn't we do something about it?" Carla said.

"Bia, stop rationalizing everything. Something serious could have happened to dad, and here you are trying to downplay it."

The two younger siblings stopped their bickering and looked up at their eldest sister.

"Now, I say that we go and find dad. What would be the use of sitting here and arguing about what happened to him, when we don't even know? We look in the marsh, we look in the high plains, by the it of doom, every where we can. Mom isn't crying for no reason, something bad has happened." Carla was right. And the two kids knew it.

Besides even if she was wrong she was the oldest, so her word was rule. Not like they had anything better to do. So the kids journeyed out to go find their father.

Just as Roberto returned from finding food.

"Hello, guys?" he called out. He looked all around the nest.

I think I might've lost them. How am I going to explain this to Jewel? Roberto thought.


	8. The Marsh

Blu crawled through the ventilation system. It was dark, dusty, and seemingly endless. Fresh air seemed to come from all directions, yet he still felt like he was in the cage.

He tried to keep himself as silent as possible, occasionally wandering ontop of a vent entrance where he could easily see Humans pacing back and forth. They would be able to see him too, had he not been quiet.

He would always stumble upon a intersection where vent shafts would conjoin and meet. He had to choose where to walk. But the system spiraled out infinitely, so it seemed.

Blu turned down another shaft and could have sworn that he was just there. He kept walking until he saw something.

Blu narrowed his eyes to see in the dark. It looked like another bird. But not just any bird.

"Diante, is that you?" Blu whispered.

The bird turned around. Diante looked at him with a smile.

"Diante, you made it!" Blu walked over to him.

"I was thinking about it, and you are right. I can't stay in that cage." Diante admitted.

"So you're coming with me?"

"Yeah."

Blu was excited, finally he convinced Diante to come.

Diante was about to start walking when Blu stopped him. He put a wing on Diante's shoulder and turned him around.

"Before we go, I need to you to do something for me." Blu said in a serious tone.

Diante looked at him quizzically, what could be making him act so strange?

"What?"

"I need you to promise me, that you will get me back in one piece…" Blu began, "And if I am ever hurt beyond the point of repair. Or if it seems like I would die anyway, I need you to promise that you will finish the job." Blu told him.

Diante let that sink in a little.

"You want me to kill you? I thought you wanted to go home?" Diante was confused.

"Only if something happens to me to the point where I would be suffering the rest of my life. Say I am mortally wounded. I don't want to go home and everybody looks at me like some kind of half living creature. I want them to know me for who I really am."

Diante thought about it. Never in his life had anyone asked him to do something so personal like that. Why would Blu trust him like that when just a few hours ago they were fighting each other?

"Only if it seems like I am not going home anyway. That's when I want you to do it." Blu clarified.

There was a method to Blu's madness, he had a good reason. Blu recounted all the times people said Diante 'left them to die'. Jewel included. Blu didn't want to be left out there in the cold wilderness to die slowly. And when Blu clarified it made sense to Diante.

"Alright, sure." Diante said.

"No, I don't need that. I need a promise. I need your word." Blu stared into Diante's eyes.

"Okay… I promise…" Diante assured him.

Blu smiled a little and nodded his head.

"Alright, let's go."

Blu and Diante navigated the maze, it was much easier having a second brain to help him. To point out things Blu would have missed before. And as they walked through the maze they knew they were getting closer.

"I think it is just this way, I could feel the fresh air." Blu said turning a corner.

The two birds stopped in their tracks when they turned. They saw something they would never want to see.

In their way, a big, scruffy, orange cat stood there. It must've heard them because it turned around and looked at them.

Its eyes seemingly glowed in the dark. One red eye and one blue eye. It looked at them menacingly.

Blu and Diante were about yell and run away but the cat dove and caught the two in his white paws.

He covered their mouths and tried to shush them.

"No, stop! Don't do that! You have to be quiet or else 'they' will hear us!" The cat spoke in British accent.

When it became clear that the cat wasn't going to hurt them they stopped screaming. Instead they looked up at the orange cat.

"You are trying to escape too?" The cat asked.

The two birds nodded their heads.

"Okay then. But keep it down. The Humans will hear you and put you back in a cage!" The cat started crawling through the vent.

He turned around to see the birds weren't following him.

"I thought you lot were trying to get of here, eh?"

"Well," Blu spoke for the duo, "Its just that. We don't really trust you."

The cat seemed to be offended.

"Oh come on. Listen, I don't eat birds. Chicken maybe. But birds like you, no sir. So I suggest if the two of you want to get out of here, you'd follow me." The cat turned back around and kept crawling.

Blu and Diante looked at each other and then followed the cat.

They crawled through the maze of shafts. The cat started a little small talk while crawling.

"I have to get outside you know. I always wanted to go on some adventure like some kind of explorer. Waltzing through the jungle, like those cartoons on TV." The Cat said.

"You watch TV?" Blu was surprised, it's been so long since he found someone to talk about living a human life with.

"Of course. My owner would always spend evenings watching the idiotbox, something good was always on." The cat said.

"I always preferred the internet." Blu said.

"Oh well I've tried to use it. But you see, I don't have thumbs. I only have paws, so I can't use a computer good. But I've tried."

The two went on like this for quite some time, Diante was really confused. He didn't know what any of this stuff was.

"Wait a minute. So you two are telling me that you were both raised by Human? That you are both pets?" Diante was about to burst out into laughter.

"NOT A PET. A COMPANION!" The two shouted at him in unison.

"Finally, I meet someone who understands." Blu said in relief.

"Right on. Hey where are you from?" The cat asked.

"Moose Lake, Minnesota."

"Oh, you're from America? I'm from Cardiff City in the UK. The name is Clyde by the way." Clyde said.

"I'm Blu."

"I can see. But what's your name?" Clyde was getting confused by his name.

 _Again. Here we go again._

"No my name is Blu"

"Oh, okay." Clyde said.

"I tried to tell you. It's a stupid name." Diante rubbed it in.

"Oh yeah? What kind of name is Diante?" Blu retaliated.

"A good one."

The trio eventually reached the end point of the ventilation system. They slid down the vent shaft and were dumped onto the ground outside. A little bit past noon. They were behind the building, in a parking lot of sorts. Quickly they ran into a bush that separated the parking lit from the other buildings.

"Alright then. Well I believe that our little journey is over. Bon voyage!" Clyde was about to leave when Blu stopped him.

"Wait, Clyde!" Blu yelled after him.

Clyde turned around and looked at Blu.

"Do you want to come with us?"

"Where?"

"To Rio De Janeiro."

Clyde thought for a moment.

"That's a long way from here. It's too long a trip by walking."

"But I thought you said you wanted to become an explorer? Like on TV?"

"But Rio is too far away. Anyway how are we going to get there?"

Diante pulled Blu to the side, away from Clyde.

"Blu what the hell are you doing? We barely even know who he is!"

"I barely even know who you are!" Blu shook Diante's wing off of him.

"But we have been together for nearly a week. We just met him. Besides, why are we going to Rio? We are going home, not Rio!" Diante said.

"But if we get to Rio, I can promise you we will find a way back home. Besides, Rio is midway between the tribe and here. And Clyde, he is a cat. He is stronger than the two of us combined, he can help us while we are in the jungle." Blu said.

Diante surrendered, they went back to Clyde. This time Diante spoke to him.

"Listen, Clyde. We need you to help us get back home. We live in the Amazon forest of Brazil. And we can't get there alone. Be a good guy and help us out, please?" Diante asked.

Clyde was thinking.

"Well, I am a stray cat. I don't have anything else better to do." Clyde finally agreed to help them. Blu almost started to cheer.

"But we can't get there with just the three of us. We are going to need some help. Let me show you a few friends of mine." Clyde signaled them to follow him.

Jewel finally got herself together. Aunt Mimi decided to stay with her until she was sure Jewel was completely stable.

Aunt Mimi tried to comfort her. Trying to bring a little joy to Jewels life. But it seemed nothing worked. Jewel often put on a fake smile but she lied like a cheap rug.

Jewel was obviously still in pain. But she was a little better. She let Eduardo and Miami's rationale get inside her.

It would have been stupid to think Blu would be back anytime soon. What was I thinking? It will probably be a few weeks and then I will be in his wings again.

Then Jewel started thinking of all the romantic moments she and her husband shared. When she would cuddle into his wings, embracing the warmth of them.

She felt cold and yearned for Blu to come back. But she kept reminding herself that she had to be patient.

But she couldn't help thinking of him.

She decided to fly to Roberto's nest to take her kids back.

After a few minutes of flying, she came to his nest. Looking inside she found in empty.

"Beto! Kids! Are you there?" Jewel called out into the empty nest.

She began to panic. She began looking everywhere to find the kids.

 _Calm down Jewel. They are probably just with Roberto. He probably took them on a tour through the Jungle_. Jewel calmed herself.

Roberto was a responsible bird, or at least to what Jewel knew of him. She decided to go find him.

Roberto was looking for her kids. He had checked almost everywhere. The river valley, the high hills to the south, the plains to the north. There was only one place they could be. The Marshland.

Roberto flew as fast as he could over there, the kids would surely get hurt.

He flew as fast as he could and didn't notice the other blue bird he crashed into. Until it was too late…

Both macaws had to recover, but Roberto saw her first and host heart nearly dropped. Jewel looked up at Roberto a happy smile adorned her face.

"Oh Roberto! There you are, I have been looking for you!" Jewel was saying.

"Oh hi Jewel. I am really in a hurry, goodbye!" Robert took off flying.

"Wait, Roberto! Come back!" Jewel took off and followed Roberto.

Roberto flew as fast as he could and Jewel couldn't keep up. Eventually Roberto lost sight of her and he hid himself under a mangrove tree. He was deep inside the Marshland now. He just had to get away and stay away from Jewel and find her kids. Then he should be fine.

When he was sure Jewel was a good distance away he continued the search.

Jewel on the other hand was panicking.

Roberto was acting strange, and he children should've been with him. Maybe he was purposely avoiding her, because he lost the children?

He better not have. Jewel kept flying until she stopped, near exhausted. She took in her surroundings for the first time. Perched on a branch of a mangrove tree that grew in still water. The marsh, and she was deep in it.

She always tried to avoid the marsh, occasionally she flew through it, but only to get to someplace else.

But now here she was. Why would Roberto fly here? As she thought about it, she became nearly one hundred percent sure that Roberto has lost her kids.

She already lost Blu, she isn't going to lose them too.

Jewel took off to find Roberto.

The Marsh was no place for a child. It was dangerous, hard to navigate, teeming with deadly creatures, the lists goes on and on.

Bia, Carla, and Tiago were looking for their father Inside of it. And they were not having any luck.

Besides the fact that their father wasn't within one hundred miles of the tribe, the Marsh was so hard to look for anything.

Green leaves and moss covered everything. Mud and rotten wood hid anything that lurked underneath. And there was no floor, just water. Dirty brown, algae covered water. Everything was either brown or green. Even the creatures that lived inside.

Carla and Tiago were terrified and wanted to go back, but Bia treated it like some sort of scientific expedition. She flew back and forth all over from plant to planet, insect to insect, animal to animal identifying them.

"Bia, remember the reason why we are here, we need to focus and not worry about literally everything in the forest." Carla said to her sister.

Tiago stopped onto of a weird looking log, floating in the mud water on the ground.

"I'm tired. We looked just about everywhere over here. Maybe we try the highlands? Or the pit of doom?" Tiago said.

"Yeah, we wouldn't be able to find anything here. Its just moss and mud all over the place." Carla agreed.

"Alright we look in the highlands next. Let me just finish looking at this rose." Bia studied it, rather than looking at it.

"I don't understand what you find so fascinating about plants." Tiago lied back on the log he was on. All of the sudden the log began moving, and making a growling sound. Before he knew it, Tiago was in the water trying to swim.

The log he was sitting on revealed itself as an alligator. Its jaws were about to close over his head.

"TIAGO!" somebody yelled out from somewhere, Tiago saw a blue figure darting past him, grabbing him with its talons with her talons. Tiago was yanked out of the water and lifted through the air. And before he knew it he was wrapped in the wings of a loving mother.

Jewel held her son close to her body.

"Tiago! Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Jewel asked. Tiago was shaking a little bit. Jewel stole a mean look at the alligator who was looking at Jewel and her son with the eyes of someone who just had their lunch stolen from them. The alligator sunk under the water.

Jewel kept her son close when she called out the names of Bia and Carla. They flew to the branch their mother was on and instantly their mother began to pull on their head feathers (The bird equivalent of a parent pulling their child's ear).

"What were you guys thinking?!" She yelled at the trio.

"You could've gotten hurt out there!" she let go of her children's feathers to keep comforting Tiago. Who was still shaking scared from the experience.

"Why are you out here? It's dangerous and you three are old enough to know that!" Jewel continued to scold them.

"Come on, we are going home." Jewel grabbed Tiago in her talons (still paralyzed with fear) and the daughters followed.

 _I am going to have a word or two with Roberto when I see him_ Jewel thought.


	9. Canada

**I was seriously debating whether or not to keep Julius in this story. He was a okay character in the previous Rio, but was eventually portrayed too much as a idiot. I don't want him to be a idiot, he isn't restarted or anything. Just innocent and blissful. Childish, and over active. I think I could use him well in this story to create a character that lightens the mood when things get sad. But I wasn't too sure on what his name should be. I thought I should keep the name as Julius but then I found that Cosmo might be a little more fitting. After all he is supposed to have the same character as** _ **the**_ **Cosmo from the Fairly Odd Parents. But I decided not to change the name and keep it as is.**

 **I also was thinking on whether or not to keep Connor. But I refused. He was supposed to be the self absorbed, narcissistic character in the story that no matter what worships himself as some sort of god. But as you saw in the previous story he was dropped** _ **fast.**_ **And by that I mean he didn't last five chapters before he was left out of the story. Not long enough to be a secondary character.**

 **I mean what do you guys think? Let me know.**

[Tulio] "Who is this, calling me at 3AM?"

[Mauri] "I didn't mean to interrupt your beauty sleep your highness, it's me. Mauri."

[Tulio] "Mauri? The head of the sanctuary?"

[Mauri] " yup that's me, I'm kind of a big deal. Listen, we have what appears to be poachers."

[Tulio] "Okay, why are you talking to me about this? Dispatch the rangers."

[Mauri] "Too late. They seemed to have captured at least a dozen or so animals a few days ago. And one of them is our mascot."

[Tulio] "Blu?"

[Mauri] "The one and only."

Tulio had to think about what was being relayed over the phone to him. It was so early in the morning. Brain fog kept him from thinking straight.

[Tulio] "How do you know this?"

[Mauri] "Blu and the other dozen or so birds were checked in the ' _Adopteros Argentina_ ' Animal shelter in Buenos Aires."

[Tulio] "Buenos Aires? Argentina?"

[Mauri] "We couldn't believe it when his description came up either. A male Spix Macaw, about a quarter of a meter tall. Weighs about a kilogram. A few ruffles of feathers behind the neck. Short compared to other males his age."

[Tulio] "That's him alright."

[Mauri] "We tried asking them politely to surrender Blu and the rest of their recent shipments back to us and the reserve, but nobody on the team speaks Spanish and besides that Blu is somehow 'missing'"

[Tulio] "Missing as in lost, stolen…"

[Mauri] "Missing as in gone without a trace. The evidence of where Blu could've gone is inside the ventilation system where a trail of his feathers were found leading to an exit."

[Tulio] "So he escaped?"

[Mauri] "That's what they are telling me."

Tulio again put the phone down. Trying to focus.

[Tulio] "Where are you"

[Mauri] "Toronto."

[Tulio] "Okay, why are you in Canada?"

[Mauri] "You weren't the first person I told. Apparently a group of hippies got wind of Blu's escape and dragged me over here to tell of his 'special intelligence level' as I call it. They want to track him down."

[Tulio] "Well if anybody knows about Blu's intelligence, it would be Linda."

[Mauri] "That's why it is strange why they want to talk to me. I've talked to Linda before I called you, she wasn't happy about waking her up so early either, and told them about it. And she is in Minnesota, so much closer to Canada than you and I were."

Linda went back home to Minnesota to run errands for her mother and stay for a while at the bookstore. She was often kept up to task about the nature reserve and was often the representative for the media.

Tulio told this to Mauri.

[Mauri] "That's probably why they called me up to Canada rather than her. That plane ticket cost damn near 100 American Dollars. Now I have to go to the bank to morrow and exchange what's left of my Brazilian currency for Canadian Dollars. But the problem is the Canadian and Brazilian economy are so different that I would have to wait hours for them to exchange my money. I don't even thinks it's worth it."

[Tulio] "Well that sounds kind of like a problem for you and you alone."

[Mauri] "I hate you."

[Tulio] "I am also your boss. Remember that!"

[Mauri] "Yes sir."

The phone call ended and Tulio was stunned.

 _How could Blu end up all the way in Argentina? And then he escaped too? I have to see this for myself._

Tulio walked over to Fernando's bed that he was asleep in. He shook Fernando a little, and his head rose up awake. Barely.

"Fernando, wake up!" Tulio whispered in his ear.

"What happened?" Fernando rubbed his eyes.

"Pack your suitcase, we're heading to Canada."

"Canada?!" Fernando gave a look like Tulio was crazy.

"I will explain on the way, but for now pack your suitcase and bring really warm clothes. Preferably that heavy jacket of yours in the closet."

Fernando didn't know anything about Canada, other than the fact it existed. But he wasn't the kind of person to pass on an offer to go somewhere new and exciting. He put on his outdoor clothes and packed a suitcase full of clothes he never thought he would need in the heat in Brazil.

Soon he met Tulio outside as they hailed a cab, bound for the airport.

"I thought you folks would like to see who they are before I told you. They are long time friends of mine," Clyde walked over to a little entrance that led to a tunnel in the back of a garage, "After you, gentlemen."

Blu and Diane walked into the tunnel and walked all the way down. They were in what they thought was the biggest party in their lives.

Music, food, lights, even stolen cellphones were used as TV's to broadcast Football or Soccer matches. People danced, drank, sang, and partied inside. There were mostly birds, of all kinds too. Some were city birds, pigeons, seagulls, doves, sterling's, etc. Others were the more tropical birds, Parrots, Cockatoos, a few rheas and toucans. The rest of the party was people of all kinds of species.

"Woah, this party is huge!" Blu said, gazing upon it.

"Yeah, I've never seen anything like it." Diante agreed.

"Lucky for you two, today is Friday. This party is always held on Friday. Come on lets go find them." Clyde led his way into a crowd of birds, trying to pass through them. But it was hard, everybody was busy with their own devices. A few times the trio accidentally bumped into and ruined a couples romantic dance move.

Eventually Clyde stopped and pointed the birds he was looking for.

"Aberdeen, Julius! Guys how are you!" Clyde yelled at the top of his lungs.

They didn't hear him.

It took Clyde at least five times to meow loud enough for the two birds to hear. Even then the birds had to strain their ears.

"Clyde! There you are, come over here!" A female Golden Conure waved a wing for them to come over.

"Aberdeen! How are you?" Aberdeen and Clyde hugged each other. A black sparrow was with her.

"And Julius, how are you?" Clyde and Julius high-fived (sort of).

"We're okay. _This one_ kept crying all over the place because he thought you were abducted." Aberdeen pointed a wing feather at Julius.

"Abducted? By who?"

"Aliens. And I am sure of it! I have proof!" Julius shouted and waved his fist.

 _He is crazy,_ Blu thought when he heard Jewel. But Diante was having, other thoughts, his jaw hung low and he kept staring _at her_.

Diante never felt like this before, he couldn't describe the feeling. It was like he felt numb, everywhere. He couldn't take his eyes of her.

Aberdeen noticed that Clyde brought a couple of other birds.

"Who are they?" Aberdeen asked, looking at Blu.

Blu answered, "That's Diante and I'm Blu"

"I know that you are blue, silly. What's your name?"

 _Why? Who cursed me with this name? Oh right._

"Blu"

"That's your name?" Aberdeen was really confused.

Clyde intervened, "His name is Blu. It is a long story. I will explain later. But Aberdeen, I need to ask you something wild."

Clyde looked to Blu or Diante to explain.

"We need you to help us…" Blu started.

Aberdeen's facial expression changed to a more confused and serious face.

"Get to…" Blu continued.

Both Aberdeen and Julius listened closer.

"Rio."

"What!?" Aberdeen and Julius almost yelled at the same time.

"I know it's crazy. Ummm, Diante, you mind explaining to them?" Blu turned to Diante. No answer.

"Diante?"

He still was paralyzed. Unresponsive.

"Diante are you okay?" Blu waved a wing in front of Diante.

"Okay… Anyway me and Diante live in the forest of Brazil, and we are really far away. We need your help in getting there."

"But Rio is hundreds of miles away! Me and Julius would love to help you, but it's just too far." Aberdeen said.

"Please? I have a family back home, and I need them. Three little birds and a wife who loves me to death! I can't just stay here!" Blu begged.

"You know Aberdeen, there isn't much to do here in Buenos Aires. I mean don't you want to go on the adventure of a life time? It will be fun!"

Both Aberdeen and Julius thought for a moment.

"How long will it take?" Julius asked.

"Well the average macaw walks at snails pace. So I think we should arrive there in about…" Blu did some math, "Three months, right?"

"Three months!?" Aberdeen shrieked.

Aberdeen was obviously against going into the wilderness for a quarter of a year. But Julius was a little bit more adventurous.

"Ooooh, I get to fulfill my life long fantasy of swinging from a vine naked!" Julius was awkwardly happy about that.

"But, we are animals. We don't wear clothes." Blu was sure Julius had gone off the deep end by now.

"I have dreams too you know!" Julius shouted.

"Come on Aberdeen what do you say? Everybody else is going, there isn't going to be anybody else left here for at least six months. Since we have to go and come back. You will be all alone." Clyde tried to persuade her.

The other three birds (actually two, Diante still didn't snap back to reality yet) kept on begging her to come, until she finally gave in.

"Fine, but only because I am sure you boys will get hurt without me there. And their isn't anything better to do here!"

"Thank you so much Aberdeen! You don't know how happy you've made me!" Blu nearly bear hugged her.


	10. NASA

**Hey guys! I wanted to give out a warning for this chapter, I usually use the metric system when I measure distance and weight. But I use the American customary system for temperature. So I might say in one paragraph kilometers or meters, of kilograms and then a few sentences down I will say Fahrenheit. I find Fahrenheit slightly easier to use but the metric system is better for distance and measure. Just bear with me okay. Also, I've never personally been to Canada (My uncle is Quebecois but that's a story for later) so if I get things wrong, my apologies.**

Roberto, try as he might, could not find the three children. He was sure Jewel was going to kill him. And even if she didn't, it would seriously hinder their relationship.

Roberto was thinking about it, he had always wanted to get close to Jewel. After all, he promised Blu to take care of her and the kids if anything ever happened to him.

But if he can't find the kids, that he lost on top of, he would never be able to prove himself to Jewel.

Roberto flew faster, he flew through the Marshland, careful of the alligators and other predators that lurked in the brackish water. But no sign of the three kids, how was he going to live with himself if he let them die out here.

This was no place for any macaw. The different Macaw tribes all agreed to stay out of the Marsh. The amount of food in the area was plentiful, but the environment kept any attempt at making a permanent residence in the area from happening. Birds of prey, alligators, venomous snakes and spiders, killer wasps, the mucky and dense atmosphere. It was nobody's land.

Occasionally a band of Macaws would venture inside to find food, but it would have to be a group of five or more birds.

Even Roberto with his expertise in the forest, was in grave danger. He didn't even want to think about how much trouble the kids were in.

He searched everywhere, so one of three things have happened or are going to happen.

The kids are somewhere else

They already were eaten (worst scenario)

Jewel will kill him

The third was definitely going to happen no matter what. He tried to shrug it off, if he found the kids he would be able to play it off like he always knew where they were. It only motivated him to look even more.

Hours passed and he came up with nothing, besides that it was getting dark. It was hard enough to look for the three during the day. But the _night_. He would put his life in danger even more than it is by just staying here.

It didn't help that the air was so thick. Every time Roberto landed to take a breath it would take way longer than usual for his lungs to stop crying out. After about the one hundredth time of stopping to breath he decided enough was enough.

He flew out above the canopy and retreated back to the village. His head hung low as he flew.

 _Sorry Jewel. I didn't mean to kill your children. I know your Husband just died a few weeks ago, and your kids are the only people you have left. But look at the bright side, you still have me!_

Roberto played the conversation between him and Jewel in his head.

He then imagined Jewel feeding him to a hungry boa. _Probably what I deserve_

While he was thinking, he was oblivious to the blue figure in front of him. He crashed into her, again, and they both crashed to the ground.

Roberto was hurt, but when he identified who he crashed into almost all his pain went away.

Jewel was still trying to get her bearings straight, so Roberto used to opportunity to try and sneak away.

But she saw him before he was able to disappear.

"Hey! Where are you going!" She was obviously angry. Roberto stopped. He did a silent prayer before he turned around. Maybe God could spare him from torture? Nah, what he did was unforgivable, God probably wouldn't care what Jewel did.

"I was just going…back home. Why?" Roberto said.

"Okay. But where are my kids?" Jewel said in softer, less angry, and a little more manipulative voice.

"Um, they are… at my nest. I was just about to bring them back to you."

"Really? So how come I found them, in the middle of the swamp?" Jewel's soft voice was starting to take an obvious harsh tone.

"And why is it, that Tiago was almost eaten by a Alligator?" Jewel was now letting her voice take a angry turn.

Before Roberto knew it, his neck was clutched in the talons of Jewel. About ready to kill him. He didn't even see her, she was so fast. Her talons were sharp, and precariously poking one his main blood vessels.

One movement from Jewel would be enough to kill him.

"Listen Jewel, I swear I didn't mean to lose them! I left to go find food for them just for one minute and when I came back they were gone! I swear!" Roberto told Jewel the honest truth.

Jewel was angry, but she still was understanding. She knew her kids were of the 'adventurous' type, blaming Roberto wouldn't change that. Slowly she got off of Roberto.

But it never happened when Blu was with her. One parent would go out to find food while the other tended to the kids. She knew Blu was more caring towards the triplets than Roberto could ever possibly be. And hence, he never let them out of his sight. But Roberto wasn't their father, he would never be able to replace him.

"You're forgiven. I know how… Ambitious, Tiago, Carla, and Bia are. Thank you for telling me the truth." Jewel sighed after she finished her sentence. She still needed to get back home before the triplets had any other wise ideas. With that Jewel took off towards her nest, Roberto thankful he wasn't murdered.

 _God really does care. Thank you!_

Jewel was still angry at Roberto, how hard could it be to keep track of three children? She entered her hollow to her little ones, they were playing some sort of game and they didn't even notice their mother enter.

"Hello, I am back home!" Jewel called out as she waded inside.

"Hi mom!" The triplets called back.

Her kids stood up to hug her. Bia, Tiago, and Carla all hugged and received a kiss from their mother.

They were awfully quiet. Like they had something on their minds.

"What's the matter?" Jewel asked them, people have always described her children. And quiet was a word that was rarely used.

They looked at each other as if they were awaiting a answer. Then Carla went forth and spoke.

"Mom…," Carla hesitated making Jewel raise a eyebrow, "Mom we are sorry for… everything. We know that you are under a lot of strews right now. It was stupid for me to decide to go out into the jungle by ourselves."

Tiago and Bia put a wing over their sister. Seeing this warmed Jewel's heart.

"We didn't want to cause any harm. We just wanted to find where dad went." Tiago said.

He shouldn't have said that. All this time had passed and Jewel tried her hardest not to think about it. She tried to keep her schedule busy so never had time to relax and let the thoughts of sorrow and loneliness fill her mind. And she always kept priority number one, do not tell the children.

But they have as much love for their father as she does. If not, even more. They have every right to know what happened to him. But if they know what really happened, it will break their little hearts.

Jewel remembered when she was just a chick, she almost lost both her parents forever. She never saw her mother again and to this day it saddens her. She wanted to make sure that her kids never had that life , and never had that experience.

"Let me tell you a secret", Jewel sat down and the smallest of her children cuddled in her wings.

"Your father loves you all very much, and he would hold the world up just for you. But something has… happened to him." Jewel pondered how to say it. Maybe being honest and not changing anything would be the best. But could they handle it? Jewel could barely handle it herself, much less the three of them.

"Remember the night after the party?" The three all nodded their heads.

"Well, me and another bird got into a little disagreement. And your father stepped in to help me. But he and the other bird began fighting and each other and fell into the river. And Blu didn't make it out." Jewel saw the looks of their faces. The tears that welled up in their eyes signaled that she wasn't doing a good job.

 _I knew I should've just told them he went to Rio. I could have delayed it for longer, I guess there's no turning back now._

"I fear the worst for him. It is… unlikely that you will see him any time soon."

Even her eldest child was on the brink of crying.

"You mean, he died?" Tiago asked.

"No, I am just saying that he wont be here for a while. But have faith, we as a family have been through much worst and we have still remained together, right? We can get through this, together." It was a hopeful line from Jewel. But as of now there was absolutely nothing she could do.

* * *

The sun was beginning to set over the Amazon. Eduardo was particularly nervous. Tribal culture dictated that after one month if somebody's spouse was lost with no trace, they would be an official widow. Eduardo has seen it hundreds of times before. The widowhood ceremony was always a bleak one, and the living spouse would always be in tears, crying their heart out. The dangers of the jungle always meant that people died left and right.

In fact he was a widower. He had the ceremony attended for him once before, and there was nothing good about it.

But this was different. His own daughter was in danger of becoming a widow herself. And it is not a good experience. A widow, as per tribal culture, is usually allowed to remarry but it is frowned upon. This means that his daughter would be alone until her death, if she doesn't find somebody else. But Eduardo knew she would never find somebody else.

She wasn't undesirable or anything. In fact she was one of the most beautiful females in the tribe, hundreds of men would jump at the chance to be with her.

But Jewel was loyal. She devoted her love, not for life, but eternally. Jewel was probably one of the most loyal and loving people Eduardo has ever met. And he was proud to call Jewel his daughter.

And, truth be told, he kind of liked Blu too. It was a shame to see the young man go. He knew he was a little harsh on Blu the first time they met, but his son in law really grew on him. He even saved the tribe and introduced him to the idea of 'friendly' Humans. Eduardo would still bite anybody who tried to pet him (he still thought Blu was a bit too much on a leash) but he can tolerate them now.

He talked it over with Mimi and she wasn't too ecstatic either.

"Listen, I know it doesn't seem like the right thing to do. But I know who Blu is personally, and he wouldn't survive a day in the forest alone." Eduardo said to her a few hours ago.

"I fear you might be right. But we should remain positive. Blu could still be alive." Mimi put a wing around her brother.

"You and I both know that the chance Blu even managed to get out of the river alive is close to zero. The way he fell, as Jewel said to me, he got hit in the head multiple times and passed out. He probably drowned."

"Even the smallest of things exist. The chance may be slim but that doesn't mean it is impossible. Nothing is impossible."

"So should I start the ceremony?"

"Wait a month, and if he doesn't show up, we can proceed."

Mimi acted like the assistant chief of the whole tribe. She advised Eduardo on almost all matters, and she had a heart of gold. A bit crazy, but that doesn't mean she was any more qualified.

Eduardo was now alone, able to think. That is what he needed. Time to think.

No, what he needed was a signal. Just the tiniest heads up from Blu, just to know that he is still alive. Then he could delay the ceremony.

He seriously doubted the possibility of Blu's survival. But he was still rooting for him.

So as he watched the sun set over the horizon, the sky turning a purple and gold color, he kept his head up high. What good was losing faith in Blu going to do? He had to cheer him on, he might not be the best at soccer, and not at survival, but damn it he had a heart bigger than the sun. It was love that drives people to do miraculous things right? Surely it would bring him home.

"Get home safe Blu." Eduardo said as he ducked into his hollow to sleep.

* * *

Aberdeen, Blu, Clyde, Diante and Julius (See how I listed them in ABC order? Clever) All gathered around a map of South America. It was expertly drawn by Blu into the dirt, it didn't look anything like the continent, more like a broken shoe. But it was good enough.

"Alright, here's the plan," Blu said, " We are here in Buenos Aires Argentina. We have to travel North, through Uruguay and crossing into southern Brazil. We will continue Northeast towards Rio, from there me and Diante will be able to navigate back to the tribe in the Amazon."

Blu drew lines in the dirt representing their route of travel.

"You guys sure you are up for it?" Diante asked, he finally overcame the effect that looking at Aberdeen gave him. It was something weird he never felt before. He tried to ignore it, but it was hard. His heart beat faster Everytime he was around her, and she just seemed so… stunning.

"It's a tall order. It may take us months until we get there. But it wouldn't change anything for us. It is up to you." Clyde chimed in. He was ecstatic about the whole idea. Julius was too, but Aberdeen was a little less sold.

"What if we get lost out there? And veer off course? What are we going to do about food, how will we escape predators?" Aberdeen had many valid objections.

"We are going to have to get a GPS." Blu said.

"What is that?" Both Julius and Diante asked.

"Global Positioning System."

Diante understood , on the contrary Julius never heard any of those words together in a sentence.

"It is a computer that connects to a satellite and then beams a signal back down to the computer to tell you your position." Blu explained further. Julius had no idea what he was talking about.

Blu would have to use his _idiot talk_

"A piece of glass that tells you where you are."

Julius understood that.

"But how are we supposed to get our paws…" Clyde looked at the other birds "Talons, on one of those?"

Blu never thought it would come to this. But desperate times called for desperate measures.

"We steal one."

"What!" everybody nearly yelled out.

"How else are we supposed to find our way around?" Blu asked.

"You have to understand this Blu. We are animals, Humans don't let animals into those big stores of theirs. How are we going to get inside?" Clyde said.

Blu had to think about it for a while.

"Perhaps we could sneak in through the door?" Blu knew it was a weak idea.

"Or we wait until the store closes, sneak into the ventilation system, tie a rope around Clyde and lower him into the store. Since he has paws, he will have a better grip of the GPS. Then we pull him up once he retrieves it and make our getaway!"

Everybody looked at Julius like he was a alien.

"Um, did he just say that?" Diante tried to figure out if this was real.

"Wait, what are we doing again?" Julius slipped back into his normal self.

"Thank goodness, I thought you were hurt!" Aberdeen hugged Julius.

"Well, we use his idea. For once." Clyde never saw Julius say anything remotely smart.

So along went the five animals to stakeout by the nearest technology store. They waited until sundown and made their dastardly theft.

The birds flew up to the roof (save for Diante, his wing was still broken) and lowered the longest rope they could find. Clyde grabbed onto the rope and attempted to climb up. First grabbing it with his jaws, then using his paws to walk up the wall. But once his whole weight was on the rope there was a problem. He was too heavy.

"Okay, we will try something else." Blu called down to Clyde, who fell for the 5th time.

"You better, I will be sore upset at you if I break something!" Clyde warned.

"Okay, what are we going to do?" Blu said to Aberdeen and Julius.

"I don't know. Even if Diante could fly up here it wouldn't be enough." Aberdeen said. They tried to bring Diante up anyway, a much easier venture.

Once Diante was on the roof they all tried to pull Clyde up, but still failed.

"Hey, lets tie the rope around this!" Diante said, tying the rope around the leg of a air-conditioner system.

They tied the rope to it and let Clyde climb up, and he finally did. They sneaked inside the building using the ventilation systems open outflow pipe. Hot air rising from it.

Once inside they crawled over to a shaft that was (By a wild guess) right over the Electrónica de consumo

(Consumer Electronics) Section.

As quietly as they could, which was actually pretty loud, they removed the ventilation cover and devised a plan on how to lower Clyde down and then bring him back up.

"There isn't anything we can tie the rope to. How will we let Clyde go down?" Diante said.

"Maybe one of us birds go down instead, wouldn't that be much easier?" Blu said.

"Oh come on now! Where's the excitement in that?" Clyde protested.

"They don't call us 'Cat Burglars' for no reason. Listen if you could just lower me down I will find a way to get back up. I promise."

With that, Clyde was lowered into the store. Barely, the other birds had to put their talons onto something like the wall so they wouldn't be dragged in.

Once on the floor Clyde quickly found the most fancy GPS he could find. The "Where Are You 9000".

He grabbed it, but now he had to find his way back up. Time to use his cat ninja techniques.

He put the GPS in his mouth and leapt to the highest shelf he could find. Then he jumped from there onto a light that was hanging from a roof, and finally he jumped onto another light, used his front paws to grab onto it and swung himself under and then over, releasing himself he was sent flying through the air just grabbing onto the vent entrance.

Applause followed from the birds as Clyde raise himself up, with the GPS in his hand.

"That was amazing!"

"Can you teach me how to do that!"

Clyde took a bow.

"Thank you, I do all my own stunts. Now lets find out where we have to go." Clyde pointed to the computer. Blu was one step ahead of him, he had already turned it on and was placing their destination.

"Calculating… Calculating… still calculating… Calculating some more… Calculating…" The GPS droned on.

It took few minutes but it finally finished.

"Walking distance from Buenos Aires to Rio De Janeiro is 1966 Kilometers. Time expected for travel… 21 days." The GPS finished.

"Oh, well that's not as bad as thought!" Clyde and Aberdeen both agreed.

"Well we walk only half as fast as a Human so for us that would be… nearly three months." Blu informed.

"Why do you have to be such a killjoy?" Clyde taunted Blu.

They followed the instructions and left for Brazil.

* * *

The aircraft banked to the left as it circled around Toronto Pearson International Airport. Fernando looked outside the window and saw all of Toronto from the air. It was a first for him, having never been outside of Brazil. He always begged his mother to let him come to Minnesota but his passport didn't arrive until now.

The aircraft descended down through the air and made contact with the runway, running to a smooth stop. The passengers disembarked and filtered out into the depths of the Airport.

"Welcome to Canada!" A sign read. Under it in French, "Bienvenue au Canada. »

Tulio and Fernando walked through the airport terminal until they found her. Linda threw her arms up and waded through the crowds of other passengers, finally reaching her family.

"Fernando! Tulio! You guys finally made it!" Linda hugged the two.

"We're okay. The plane ride hurt my neck though!" Tulio felt the soreness of his back and neck. And uncomfortable ride, but he was thankful it was over.

"Fernando, make sure you put your coat on, I looked on my phone and its below 20 degrees." Linda said after hugging Fernando.

Fernando didn't believe her, he begrudgingly put on his big coat. It restricted his movement, a lot, and he felt so limited. Nearly claustrophobic inside. But he was thankful for it once they stepped outside.

The city was in heavy winter, the snowfall stopped but it was still scattered all over the ground. Walking on the sidewalk was a nightmare for Tulio and Fernando. But Linda was more experienced with the cold, guiding their steps through the snow packed ground and scores of people strewn about the airport.

They hailed a cab and instructed him to drive to a large assembly building, on the coast of Lake Ontario.

After paying the driver they entered the building, to a room full of environmentalists, hippies, computer geeks, bureaucrats and politicians. And they do not mix well.

"Guys you're finally here!" Mauri nearly crawled up to the family. He looked exhausted, as if his soul was taken from his body.

"Mauri? What happened to you?" Linda asked him.

"What happened to me? WHAT HAPPENED TO ME?", Mauri was about to go on a rant, "I have been here for nearly a day and a half. And all these people do is argue, fight each other, blame for it, ask questions I don't know the answers to, and expect me to have everything down packed. All because of a stupid bird!" Mauri calmed himself down.

He was a rather skinny man, pale skin and had a receding hairline. Somewhere around 40 years old.

Soon the group where approached boa group of other people.

"You must be the founders of the wildlife sanctuary in Brazil. I'm Evan Lopez, head of the World Wildlife Fund." Evan introduced himself.

The family introduced themselves.

"Why is this place so busy?" Linda asked.

"We thought you would know." Evan chuckled a bit, "That macaw of yours, Blu, has caught the eye of everybody interested in animal intelligence."

"Well I know Blu is smart. But this is crazy!"

"If you think this is crazy, then you haven't seen when they start bringing up climate change! This whole building becomes a boxing arena over politics." Mauri whispered into Linda's ear.

"Blu isn't just smart. He is borderline Human intelligence. Never have we seen an animal use a GPS , or communicate with other animals for mutual benefit." Evan continued.

"What happened to Blu?" Tulio asked.

Evan, instead of answering, led them to a small room with a big computer screen. He inserted a CD into it and it began playing a surveillance video.

"Now watch closely. To the top left of the screen." Evan led their gaze towards a cat, a rope attached around it, being lowered into view. It landed on the floor, grabbed a GPS and did some pretty impressive parkour, to get back into the ventilation system from which it came.

"Okay, so?" Linda was confused. What did this have to do with Blu?

Evan held up his hand as if to say, _wait and see._

The video film changed to a outdoors setting, a group of birds and the same cat were gathered around the GPS watching it. Then they pointed with their wings and paws the direction they needed to go and started walking in that direction. In the midst of this animals was the one and only, Blu. She recognized him from the shape of his feathers, but there was another that looked similar too him. Almost exactly alike, just green and red.

Linda knew Blu could do all of this. But she never told a research organization before. Frankly she was scared they would take Blu away and conduct some horrible experiment on him. But she was relieved they found Blu at the same time. Linda knew Blu wasn't ready to survive in the wild by himself, he nearly died when he got locked out of the house some years ago. But at least when he was in the tribe he had other macaws, here is a horror fest .

"They are traveling North East, soon they will cross the Rio Del Blanca into Montevideo, Uruguay. We suspect they are heading north to Brazil." Evan said pointing to a map of the North and South America.

Everybody in the room was silent.

"Never before, have we ever documented a species of animal Co-operating with another for a means of travel. And never before has a Macaw made a journey like this. Even among domesticated animals. This is a breakthrough in research."

"I'm sorry to interrupt but, I am a professional Ornithologist. My team and I have made records of animals using Human technology for advancement. This isn't new information." Tulio stated.

"That may be true, but did your team 'test' this knowledge outside of Human realms such as a city?" Evan rebutted.

Tulio shook his head.

"Even subway rats use have been documented to use Humans as a way to survive. But once you put the rats into the wild, they perish. This is a first. Every agency interested in animal research has made a specific contribution to help keep track of the location of Blu." Evan continued.

"So you plan on rescuing him?" Linda asked.

Evan fell silent for a minute, closing his eyes and covering his mouth with his hand. He took a big breath of air, then spoke.

"No."

"What!" Everybody (Fernando and Mauri included) yelled at him at once.

"Listen, I know it seems bad. But there are many factors for the reasons why we will not attempt to rescue him."

"Then what's the point of tracking him down like this? If you can't rescue him when he needs it why bother?" Tulio yelled at Evan.

"And how exactly are we supposed to do that? We can't just grab a bird in the out in the middle of the forest. That kind of operation would cost so much money, we don't exactly have the funding of NASA here!"

"So then what are you going to do when he gets to the tribe? Pick up each and every bird there and check for Blu?" Linda said.

" _We_ don't have to find him. He has a GPS remember? I got a few of our technical guys to hack and tap into the GPS signal so we know where he is, every second of the day!"

"If you could do that then you could rescue him!"

"Look", Evan stood up frustrated, "I don't have time for this! I have already explained to you that we cannot intervene because this is a study on how intelligent animals survive outside of Human society secluded from members of their own species. What you guys are for is to tell us everything you know about Blu so we have some context for our research. And you are needed to run a test for our reference."

"What kind of test?" Tulio asked.

"I can't tell you know but you will find out once you get the info. I already booked a nice hotel room for you and your family. I would advise going there so I didn't waste any of our funds."

Evan wasn't lying when he said the hotel was nice. It was clean, had free breakfast, free high speed Wifi, hot water (and cold water if you need it), and a great view of Lake Ontario. Linda could almost make out the land mass on the other side of the lake, but it would have been almost impossible. Lake Ontario was too big.

Tulio read through emails on his computer. Hundreds of organizations he never had any contribution in filled his inbox. Including a peculiar one.

NASA

Topic: Blue Macaw

Dear Mr. Monteiro .

We have been watching the situation closely and decided to give you a helping hand. This includes the opening of the worlds only NASA Department of Animal Research. This Blue macaw in interest is one that could possibly lead to the first communication between Humans and animals. Please reply as soon as possible.

Dr. Richard Venkat, NASA

"So Evan lied to us about not having the funding of NASA." Tulio called his wife over to the computer.

"All of this just to track him down. But they refuse to rescue him! It would be the right thing to do after all!" Linda complained.

"Listen, Linda. I am a scientist myself and I can assure you that these people do not care about what is or what isn't morally wrong. But all we can do now is just sit back and watch I guess." Tulio switched the page to a satellite map of South America showing Blue's position on it. A blue dot highlighted his location.

"Let's just pray that he makes it." Linda said.

"For now that's all we _can_ do!"


	11. Montevideo

Night time.

Aberdeen, Blu ,Clyde, Diante and Julius crossed the Rio Del La Plata with ease. Climbing aboard ferry that shipped them to the other side of the waterway.

The trip would take a while, but it was worth it. The animals sat onto of the ferry and watched as the city of Buenos Aires disappeared into the horizon.

Aberdeen and Diante were sitting together, Blu not too far away. Julius and Clyde went to marvel at the beauty of the waterway below deck.

"Uh, Aberdeen?" Diante turned to her, Aberdeen was lost in the scenery. But when she heard her name she turned around.

"Yeah? What's up?" Aberdeen asked him.

"you know I think we got off on the wrong foot. You know when we first met and I kinda blanked out…" Diante was trying to figure out what to say next.

"Oh, its okay. I thought that you had some kind of _condition"_

Blu was laughing like nothing else. He tried to hide it but it still showed either way.

"Yeah, I don't. I was just… tired. I was traveling for a while and I was so exhausted." Diante lied.

"Okay, as long as you're okay. Is all that matters."

"I was just scared I looked like some sort of idiot in front of you."

"Don't worry about it, look I have had my share of embarrassing moments in front of people too," Aberdeen put a wing around Diante, making him freeze up again, "Just learn that it doesn't matter. And that as long as you sure around friends, you can make all the embarrassing moves you want, you can trust them."

Diante said nothing. Blu was practically dying behind them.

Aberdeen stood up and went to join Clyde and Julius for sightseeing.

"What are you laughing at?" Diante demanded at Blu.

"Oh nothing! Nothing at all!" Blu was still laughing a little.

"I still hate you, you know that."

"It is just that you are such a fool."

Diante turned around and looked at Blu, looked him straight in the eye.

"What do you mean?"

"I have been there and done that. You can trust me on this, you are in love."

Diante understood that Blu was right. He finally identified what that feeling inside of him was. Ever since he was a chick, people have pushed him aside and discarded him. He longed to know what it felt like to be loved.

But he wasn't going to give Blu the satisfaction of being right.

"Shut up, idiot. You don't know the first thing about _love_."

"So is that the reason why I am happily married with three beautiful kids?"

"Shut up!"

"And how come you have been rejected by almost everybody you know."

"I said, Shut up!" Diante was clearly angry.

"Why? Because I am right and you know it?"

"Open your beak one more time and I'll-"

"You will do what?"

A swift punch from Diante's good wing answered his question.

Blu wasn't in the mood to fight Diante right now. So he backed down from the challenge.

"All right," Blu said caressing the part of his face that was hit, "you win."

Diante said nothing and instead turned back around to face the now rising moon. The ferry was awfully quiet. The passenger onboard probably asleep, or barely awake.

The two stood there, on the roof of the ferry. Silent with each other.

"I'm sorry."

"You're what?" Blu never heard Diante apologize before for anything, save for the incident between him and Aberdeen but that was different.

"I'm not going to say it again!"

Blu looked at Diante, his back still watching the rising moon. Something was changing inside of him.

"What's on your mind?" Blu asked him, curiosity getting the best of home.

Diante shifted his position around and didn't answer for a while. Then he spoke,

"Everything I've done. Man, sometimes I wish I could turn back the time and make the right choices. I wouldn't be the same bird I am, you understand?"

Blu didn't answer. Instead he asked another question.

"What happened between you and her all those years ago?" Blu asked him.

Diante looked down at the water and shook his head.

"Go to sleep. I don't wanna talk about it."

The trip was three hours. The moon stretched out over the sky.

The boat docked into the port of Montevideo, and the ferry horn made a loud and deep wailing noise. Everybody who was asleep was now awake, passengers grabbed their bags and suitcases to leave.

And the animals hopped off the boat.

"My back is killing me!" Clyde said, stretching his back out.

"Okay, where do we go now?" Aberdeen asked.

Blu looked at the GPS.

"We travel north. Out of Montevideo towards the Brazilian border."

"We should get some rest. That could be hundreds of miles away from here." Clyde said.

"Where. There isn't anyplace here we can go to sleep." Julius said.

"I have something in mind." Clyde grew a smile on his face.

A few moments later

"Clyde next time we choose a place to sleep, do not talk!" Diante yelled at him.

"Come on. It isn't that bad!"

"This is literally a box that you found in a dumpster! It smells, probably has who knows how many germs in there." Blu was a little squeamish. The box wasn't the cleanest one ever.

"Desperate times call for desperate measures Blu. It really isn't that bad once you step inside."

"Listen, why don't we all find someplace to sleep. Clyde you can stay there, everybody else find your own bed." Aberdeen said.

They agreed on that plan and went out hunting for somewhere to sleep. Blu perched himself on a tree not far away, as he closed his eyes he thought to himself.

 _I wonder what is going on in the tribe. I hope Jewel and the kids are alright._

Then he started to think of Jewel. How he wished he was there right now in her soft embrace. He wondered what she was doing without him.

Then he started thinking of Roberto. He hoped that he was taking care of his family while Blu was gone. But at the same time he was scared. He didn't want him to get too close to Jewel. He was scared that Roberto would swipe Jewel off her feet and take her away forever.

He imagined walking inside of the tribe, surviving the nearly three months of travel. Come to find out, Jewel doesn't love him anymore. That she was better with Roberto. Rejecting Blu and leaving him to live alone.

But would Jewel really do something like that?

Blu shook his head

 _She wouldn't do that._ _She loves me. Even after the incident at the pit of doom, after me making mistake after mistake, she still loves me. She never gave Roberto as much as a kiss as far as I know. So that means she loves me with her whole heart. Right?_

 _Right?_

* * *

 **Dear Evan**

 **I am writing to you from the computer at the hotel. I have come to inform you that me and Linda will not help you in your pursuit of Blu. My primary concern is not the advancement of research, but the well being of the animal. I live to protect them, and if you can't rescue Blu then I will not Co-operate with you. I have three things to say.**

 **I will not do any of the test sent by your team. I have looked the details over and they are inhumane.**

 **You lied to me about the whole NASA thing. I was on the phone with Dr Richard Venkat yesterday and it seems like you knew about this all along.**

 **Tell each and every scientist that works with you, that their mother is a prostitute.**

 **Ps: Their sisters too.**

 **From: Dr. Tulio Monteiro**

Linda let out a small chuckle after reading over the essay.

"You sure about the last part of the email?"

"Decided that would get my point across." Tulio moved the mouse over to the send button on his screen, in seconds a text was displayed showing the message was sent.

"So we can go back to Rio?" Tulio asked.

"Well it seems like a shame that we came all the way over here and didn't get anything done. Maybe we should at least open up a little bit to them. Maybe they might help us save him." Linda said, returning to the sofa.

"Your heart is too big. You know that?" Tulio smiled as he turned in his swivel chair.

Linda laughed a little.

"Never have I seen a ornithologist type a email like that!"

"How many ornithologist have you seen?"

"You are the first."

A little time passed before the two of them said anything.

"But in all seriousness," Linda picked the conversation back up, "What are we going to do?"

"Well, I just checked his location, and he is in Montevideo, Uruguay. He should arrive in the Blu Macaw colony in about three months time. Assuming of course… he survives."

"But we can't just sit back and let him wander around alone in the jungle. How hard could it be? He is the only Blu Macaw outside of the colony."

"But where do we look? We have the GPS but that only tells us so much. It could be off by a foot or a mile. And then we have to track him down. By the time we get to Uruguay he would've likely vanished into the jungle again! And that isn't much time."

"So I guess those people were right. They _cant_ save Blu." Linda was sad. The bird she grew up all her life with. Her best friend. Was lost in the forest, and she cant do anything about it.

Tulio heard a ding sound from his computer. He rolled his chair over to it and found a reply.

 **Dear Dr. Monteiro**

 **No, I will not tell the scientists that their mothers and sisters are a prostitute.**

 **I have a deal to make with you. You help us with what we need and I will make sure that Blu gets back home safe. We might not be able to send somebody to pick him up and take him to the Blue bird colony but we can ensure that he knows what the best directions and route is.**

 **But first I need a few answers from you. Can he read any language at all? Has he demonstrated the ability to read? Does he understand what he is reading?**

 **We can hack into his GPS using some geeky wireless coding tool. We can then send messages to him like you would a cell phone, by the way this is where this NASA funding money is going.**

 **It is a new technology, but it is risky. We can damage the GPS and he wont be able to tell where he is going. I ran the numbers and it showed that there is about a four percent chance of this failing. Do you want to take the chance?**

 **If you are interested, reply.**

 **From Evan**

Tulio and Linda both read the message.

"Should I?" Tulio asked.

Linda stared at the computer screen for a while. Then nodded her head.


	12. Brother

**Thank you Pableroski for catching my mistake on the Spanish translation. For you and everybody else who can speak Spanish, let me know and I will try and fix it.**

The rising sun shone brightly over the city of Montevideo. Blu and everybody else was up early, to get a head start.

"So, how did you all sleep?" Clyde asked after stretching his back a little.

"I didn't! Man, that tree hollow was so uncomfortable", Diante complained, rolling his head around to message his neck.

"I don't know about you, but I slept like a baby!" Clyde grinned at him.

"You also smell like a skunk!" Blu joked around. But Clyde did not smell good. The box he slept in was from the garbage, no surprise there.

"It will wash off… probably."

"Where do we go now?" Aberdeen asked Blu who looked at the GPS.

"We travel uptown, until we exit the city. From there we will follow the Highway route 8 all the way to the Brazilian city of Pelotas. Shouldn't be too difficult." Blu said.

"Sounds easy enough. But what if the highway branches out and we don't know which way to go?" Julius asked.

"That's why we have a GPS Julius."

"Oh."

"Well we might as well get a move on. We are wasting time just standing here." The five began walking towered the outskirts of Montevideo.

The journey outside of the city was long in of itself. Clyde was obviously the fastest walker out of all of them (because you know. He is a cat), so he let the birds ride on top of him.

It was a strange sight indeed, a few people who were walking down the street took note of it and recorded the scene on their phone.

A cat giving a ride to a few birds. Interesting.

The five eventually stopped just before they left Montevideo, they were all hungry. They didn't eat any breakfast yet.

"What are we going to do about food?" Aberdeen asked, while on Clyde's back.

"That's a good question. We will probably find something along the way." Blu said.

"But I am hungry now."

Clyde had an idea.

"Guys, stay here. I have a plan that just might work!" Clyde let the birds hop off his back, cleaned himself under a rain gutter and then ran to the nearest human he could find.

The person was eating some sort of sandwich. Clyde brushed up against the leg of the man and let out a meow.

The man looked down at him and smiled.

"Hola gato. ¿Quieres algo de mi comida? (Hello there cat. Do you want some of my food?)"

Clyde let out a happy meow and the man took a sizable piece of his sandwich and gave it to Clyde.

Clyde took it and returned to the birds.

"How did you do that?" Diante asked him.

"A Human gave it to me. Breakfast is ready!"

Blu was extremely happy, once they left Montevideo it would mean he would be one step closer to getting back home. He thought about it in his head.

 _Three months isn't that long of a time! Before I know it, I will be back with Jewel. How I miss her and the kids. I wonder how she is doing right now._

Blu was in a sort of haze, imagining himself with his family made him feel better.

"Hey Blu!" Clyde spoke to him while they walked towards the city limits.

"Hmm?" Blu snapped back to reality.

"You mentioned you have a family. Tell me more."

A smile grew on Blu's face.

"They are the best. I have three kids and they are all just the sweetest little chicks you can think of, they never fail to warm my heart. And my wife is the best, she is probably the most loving bird I have ever met! And so beautiful too!"

"Aww!" Clyde, Aberdeen, and Julius swooned over Blu's family.

Diante rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath instead.

"And what about Diante?" Aberdeen asked.

"What?!" Both Blu and Diante cried out simultaneously.

"Yeah, aren't the two of you brothers or something?" Julius asked.

"No!"

"But you look almost exactly alike! Aside from color, everything else is nearly the same!" Clyde chimed in.

"We aren't related at all, luckily." Blu told them.

"Are you sure?"

Blu and Diante nodded their head.

"Okay, if you say so."

"Brothers," Blu chuckled to himself, "That's the funniest thing I've heard in a while!"

"Yeah." Diante and Blu looked at each other. This time more observantly. They understood what everyone meant by they look alike.

It wouldn't be too hard to confuse them as twins, one a royal blue color, and the other a green color with red spots.

"Listen, Blu and Diante. We are going to get you back home, okay? Don't worry about a thing!" Clyde said.

That made Blu feel a bit better. Diante didn't care too much.

* * *

"Dr. Monteiro. I knew you would come around sometime." Evan smiled as Tulio walked into his office.

"What do I have to do?"

"Your first task is to tell me everything you know about that specific Blue macaw."

"He was raised by humans since he was a chick. In a bookstore more specifically. He was taught to understand Human language at a young age, and then to read it and write it down."

"We have never seen any animal that could that! Even among the great apes, our _cousins_ for crying out loud!" Evan shook his head.

"But Blu is _special_." Tulio said.

Evan looked up at him.

"In what way?"

"Not all Blue Macaws are like him you know. He is the only one."

"Makes sense. Does he have any offspring?"

"He does. But we haven't looked to study them as much as Blu. His female companion keeps us at distance."

"I see. Where are the chicks?"

"Inside of the Blue Macaw colony in the jungle. It would be hard to find them."

"I don't plan on it."

Evan handed Tulio a paper full of writing on it. This is what we need from you. Remember our little deal?"

Tulio skimmed it over, front and back.

"I remember. You promise to hold up your end of it too, right?" Tulio asked him.

"We aren't that untrustworthy. We help out animals, just like you. No reason to lie about it."

"Why do _you_ keep saying _we_? Who are you talking about?"

"My organization. The World Wildlife Fund, who else?"

"Just seemed a little strange." Tulio whispered as he left the room.

When the door closed behind him Evan picked up his phone.

"Yeah, we got him onboard. Time to get started."

* * *

The morning sun stretched out over the Amazon.

Jewel was inside of the hollow, the three children all cuddled into her wing for the night.

She woke up foggily, her neck hurt and she was starving.

When Blu was there, he would let Jewel use his body as a pillow. And every morning he would fetch breakfast for the whole family.

She still had to get used to him not being there, she even woke up with a smile because she thought she would open her eyes to see her husband smile down lovingly upon her. But when she woke up to find no such thing, it pained her.

She only saw him in her dreams, and the dreams would make her feel happy. Unlike anything.

The dreams she had became almost like some kind of drug, a natural ecstasy produced from her mind. And she became addicted to it.

When she wasn't tending to her children or completing daily tasks around the tribe, she would sleep.

She wouldn't always have dreams of Blu, but sleep helped her escape from the pain of real life. But she knew she couldn't do this forever. So she stopped.

After getting breakfast for her little ones she finally decided to head to her fathers nest to talk about what happened. She brought her kids along too, she wasn't crazy.

But Jewel just needed another adult to talk to, and her father lost her mom too. So her father had the same experience. He has been down this path before, he knows how it feels. _He understands._

She landed outside of Eduardo's hollow. He was inside, enjoying his breakfast. He turned his head little to see who it is, and a smile grew on his face.

"Hello darling, come on inside." Eduardo motioned her in with his wing.

"Hi daddy!" Jewel reached up and gave her father a quick kiss on the cheek.

The three little kids followed suit, each of them hugging their grandfather, happy in his embrace.

"Is what brings you all here?" Eduardo asked after giving a hug to Bia.

Jewel sighed and was lost in thought for a minute. Eduardo was a little concerned, but he knew what this was about.

"Why don't you guys go outside and play?" Jewel asked the three little kids.

"Play what? There isn't anything we can do outside." Tiago complained.

"I don't know, maybe you can race your sisters? Please just find something to do."

Tiago, Carla, and Bia went outside playing a game of soccer with a Brazil nut they found.

Eduardo and Jewel walked over to the entrance of the hollow, to keep an eye on the kids while they talked.

"We need to talk, about Blu." Jewel started.

"I was scared about this, but I guess it had to happen." Eduardo sighed and put a wing around Jewel in a Father-daughter kind of way.

"I'm worried about him. You know how he is, he wouldn't be able to survive in the forest by himself."

"He isn't by himself though. He has Diante."

Jewel wasn't comforted by that.

"You think that makes anything better?"

"Look, Diante is…"

"What? Selfish? Uncaring? A traitor in the very sense?" Jewel rolled her eyes and scowled.

"Well, yes. But I find it unlikely he would leave Blu to die."

"I came to that same way of thinking. Blu and Diante need each other now, they wouldn't try and kill the other because their life depends on each other. But I still don't trust him, not now, not ever."

Eduardo took his wing off of Jewel.

"Did he ever, _apologize_?" Eduardo asked her.

Jewel didn't answer, she said something else.

"Before Blu fell in the lake, Diante and myself got into a… argument. It was about what happened before. I don't know who he is anymore."

Eduardo knew there was something else on Jewel's mind, so he pushed her to share it with him.

"If there is anything you want to tell me, just know I am here. You can vent as much as you want to me, I'm your father and you should be comfortable sharing your feelings." Eduardo said to her.

Jewel didn't say anything, tears began forming in her eyes, she tried to hold them back but she looked like she might explode. Her eyes and throat started to burn and she started breathing heavy.

Jewel buried her face into her father's side and just started to cry, and vent.

"I MISS HIM SO MUCH!" Jewel cried out, with her face still buried inside of her father's chest.

Eduardo rubbed her back to try and comfort her. As long as he was Jewel's father, he would always be there for her.

"I just want him to be back home with me, I would do anything just to know that he is alright!"

Eduardo went through that, and he remembered the pain he felt when he lost his wife. But she never came back. He had to learn to stop crying years ago, or else he wouldn't have made it.

But he didn't want to say that to Jewel now. This was the time when that wouldn't be helpful. Jewel was most fragile now.

A few moments later, Jewel was back on her feet. She was wiping the tears off her face and drying her eyes.

"Thank you, dad. I'm sorry if I caused any trouble." Jewel was slightly embarrassed in front of her father, the only person she revealed her emotions to like that was Blu.

"You can stay here if you want. As long as you need." Eduardo offered.

Jewel thought about it for a while and nodded her head.

"I think I need that now. Thank you."

"No problem. And I am sure Blu will be back soon. Don't worry."

"But I _am_ worried."

"Why?"

"Because in one month I will become a widow. And I don't want to go through that."

Eduardo hoped Jewel wouldn't remember that. But it was true.

Jewel knew very well what would happen if Blu didn't get back home within a month. She would be alone forever.

That sweet and kind, slightly geeky bird that she knew since Rio, was probably dead somewhere. Killed by who knows what.


	13. Apollo

**It is currently 1:14 in the morning (Eastern Standard time for your info) if I make a few mistakes towards the end, my bad. I don't feel tired, but I know that I am. If this chapter seems a little rushed I am sorry, but I gotta got to sleep soon. Hope you all enjoy!**

The group was finally out of the city of Montevideo, and ahead of them stretch smaller suburbs and forest.

The GPS occasionally lost signal connection and had to recalculate, a inconvenience because that meant they had to stop while it recalibrated itself. But this time, things were different.

The group was well outside of the city and inside a dense stretch of forest until they reached the next town, but the GPS began to act strange.

"I hope this thing doesn't break on us!" Blu muttered while the GPS screen turned a red color, in white the words "Recalculating" appeared across the lower half of the screen.

"How far do you think it is until we reach the next town, maybe there we can get a new one." Clyde asked, taking a little nap on the floor not too far away.

"Maybe a few hours away, hold on… Something's happening." Blu held the device in his wings, it started to vibrate.

"I don't think it's supposed to do that!" Aberdeen pitched in.

Blu set it down on the floor and backed away, looking at the GPS as if it were some sort of alien artifact he uncovered.

A new line of text appeared on the screen, and the vibrating motion of the device ceased.

"Update Available!" a voice read out from the device.

"That's probably why it's been acting strange." Aberdeen walked up to the device and held it in her talons. Pressing a few buttons, an hourglass symbol appeared on the screen.

"I never knew a GPS would need a update. That's strange." Blu has been with Human technology his whole life and never saw a device like this do that.

They waited a while, and after ten or so minutes, it finally came back to its regular self.

Blu picked it up and the GPS plotted out a new course, to a border town just next to the Uruguay-Brazilian border.

"It changed route. It says it will only take five hours to reach by Human speed. So that's probably the rest of the day for us." Blu walked back over to the main group.

"Okay, we can start walking. But just give me a minute, I'm exhausted." Clyde was still napping on the forest floor.

Then the device shook again. Only for a brief second this time. Blu looked at it and saw a new line of text. It was a message.

" _Testing…are you receiving this message?"_ The text read out. The GPS gave Blu the option to reply.

Blu wasn't exactly sure what was going on, but he wrote a message going back to wherever the first came.

In a few minutes another message appeared.

" _Blu! Thank god it worked! Is your GPS working fine?"_ Blu had no idea how the GPS knew his name. He must be talking to somebody that knows who he is.

" _Who is this?"_ Blu wrote.

" _It's me! Tulio!"_ Blu went wide-eyed. _How did Tulio know that I have a GPS, and who to text. Does that mean Linda and Tulio know where I am?_ Blu thought.

As if the GPS read his mind, another message came.

" _Look, I know you have a lot of questions. Here is the basics._

 _1_ _st_ _of all,_ _ **I CAN'T BELIEVE I AM TALKING TO A BIRD USING TEXT MESSAGES!**_ _This is going down in history!_

 _2_ _nd_ _We know you got lost, your location is far, far away from the Blue Macaw colony. Judging by the coordinates of the GPS you are outside of Montevideo. We have been tracking you down since you received the GPS in Buenos Aires, and I have to applaud you on the progress you are making!_

 _3_ _rd_ _please do not ask how I am talking to you via a GPS. You wouldn't believe me if I told you. (Then again, I am talking to a bird so both you and I should be open to anything right about now.)_

 _4_ _th_ _from now on we will help you chart out your location, and help guide you with what you need to survive._

 _5_ _th_ _Linda promised she would make you a cup of hot chocolate and cookies when you get home_."

Blu called the rest of the group towards the GPS and told them what happened.

"What?! I don't believe this!" Clyde shook his orange head.

"I never thought I could talk to a Human. Everytime I tried people thought I was crazy!" Julius said.

Blu sent a message back to Tulio, " _Any guide on how to get back home_?"

" _Working on it."_

"Well, this is definitely a good thing. At least the Humans can help rescue us!" Blu said, ecstatically to everybody.

"Yeah! Ignoring the fact that Humans got us into this situation to begin with!" Diane said sarcastically.

Blu sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Why do you always have to be such a pessimist? Might I remind you that it was _you_ how pushed us down the river and got us lost out here to begin with!" Blu asked him.

"Okay, here we go with this again! I thought I already told you it wasn't me, it was Jewel who got us in here!" Blu and Diane began arguing until Aberdeen and Clyde stopped the two.

"Okay, listen, it doesn't matter. You are going home now. No need to fight about what happened." Aberdeen said.

"whatever." Blu said as he looked back at the GPS for more information from Tulio.

A new message appeared after a while.

" _Your GPS is giving you the fastest route that we can plot out. Follow the GPS until we give further directions. Good luck out there Blu. Fly towards Porto Alegre across the Brazilian border. It should only take a few short hours to reach by flight."_

Blu wrote another response.

" _I can't. Currently traveling with a cat and a injured macaw. Flight is out of the option. Any other way?"_

The GPS fell silent.

Blu waited anxiously for a response.

Finally the vibration of the GPS came about.

" _Okay… change of plans then. Walk to the Uruguayan border town of Rivera. From there rest and then continue your journey until you reach the Brazilian town of Pelotas."_

Blu plotted the course in his GPS.

It was almost as if today was a dream come true for Blu. He was scared that they wouldn't be able to make it all the way back home, not before something else gets them. There were all sorts of predators lurking about in the forest, birds of prey, poison insects, snakes, you name it!

" _I suggest walking nearby a highway, that way the GPS has better signal, you can verify exactly where you are heading and you can get out of the dense forest and away from predators."_ As if Tulio read his mind, a new message was delivered.

* * *

The trip was going to be a long one still. But much easier with the guidance of Tulio. But Blu had no idea what his struggle to get back home meant.

Already, news of his journey was circulating all over the globe. Video of the group of animals walking through Buenos Aires and Montevideo were watched by millions. People all over the world began rooting for Blue's survival.

He had no idea that he want just fighting a battle of survival. He was fighting a emotional battle, Jewel ever so on the edge of a mental breakdown, a political battle, nature conservationists against the politicians who want to keep Blu as a lab rat, and a scientific battle.

* * *

Tulio and Mauri monitored the location of Blu in the wilderness.

"Can't believe it. We really are living in the future." Mauri said to himself.

"What kind of crazy world do we live in, where I can text a bird? This is the kind of stuff I would expect to be in the head of a psychopath!"

"Makes you think about where the world is heading, huh?" Tulio said.

"Indeed. They said it was impossible for Humans to fly, now we have flying craft that can take you from New York to Beijing in a few hours. They said it was impossible to put a man on the moon, and now twelve people have set foot on that planet."

"That's just Human nature. God said to Adam and Eve don't eat the apple in the garden, and what did we do? Rebellious by nature is the perfect label for us."

"Now millions of people are betting money on the fate of a bird. Just last week, nobody would've cared whether Blu died or not!"

"They are actually betting money? It thought it was just a rumor!"

Mauri shook his head and laughed.

"They are betting by the thousands of dollars. Peoples livelihood teeter on the edge on whether this bird survives or not."

Tulio raised a glass of water to his mouth.

"Dumbasses." Tulio sighed.

"I agree. Is that another quality us Humans share?" Mauri joked.

"What kind of idiot thought that the Apollo missions would be possible?"

"Good point."


	14. The Trust That Binds us Together

**I'm going to be writing stories in this format from now on. Apparently some of you don't like having three different parts of the story in just one chapter. I understand, so the chapters will be a bit shorter, but probably easier to follow. We will see how it goes.**

"So, you've given up?"

"I didn't give up, I just don't think it is possible anymore. Besides it has been nearly two weeks and we still haven't found him."

Jackson shook his head, "I am telling you, he was on that truck!"

"Well what are we supposed to do about that now? That truck is gone, far away from here!" Roberto protested.

"Maybe we should've done something about it when the truck was right in front of us!"

"Okay," Roberto sighed, "If you want to chase a magical truck that is heading somewhere, we have no idea even exists, be my guest!"

"Buenos Aires!"

"Where is that?"

"That's where the truck is heading."

They really were going in circles about the whole thing. But the two thought they were alone, there was another waiting and listening to everything being said.

"Look, we can't find that truck now. Besides, for all we know it could've reached its destination by now. I am calling off the search." Roberto said.

"That isn't your call to make, may I remind you!" Jackson nearly yelled at Roberto.

"Oh? Wait a minute… It turns out I am the head of safety inside of the tribe. So yeah, I call the shots!"

"I hope you know what you are doing."

"I hope you know who you are talking to!"

"If I may ask, _sir_ , why are you giving up on the search so easily?"

"I told you already, I'm not giving up."

"What about _her_?" Jackson asked. Roberto was taken back by this, he had no idea who Jackson was talking about.

"Who?" Roberto asked.

"Jewel, shouldn't we ask her how she feels about all of this?"

Roberto remained quiet as he thought about it.

"Isn't that her husband that is out there alone? You shouldn't do anything without her approval you know." Jackson reminded Roberto.

"She doesn't understand-"

"Understand what? That's her family, if anybody should be the head of the rescue it should be Jewel herself!" Jackson went on.

"I don't even understand why Eduardo would choose you to lead this. Wouldn't Jewel be the most emotionally tied to Blu out of everybody else in the village? She would be most likely to move a little out of her comfort zone to go get him!"

"We didn't have a chance!"

"I told you we did! We could've at least made sure whether or not Blu was on the truck or not."

"Look, there is a time and a place for everything! And the time and place in which that happened wasn't right! This conversation is over!" Roberto was now clearly frustrated.

"But-"

"Go home!"

"Bu-"

"I said, the conversation is done! Go, Home!"

"Might _I_ say something?" a voice from seemingly nowhere said.

The two men stopped arguing and looked for the source of the sound, until she revealed herself.

"Jewel." The name slipped from Roberto's beak.

Jewel turned to Jackson.

"Jackson, thank you for everything you tried to do. But listen to Roberto, go home."

"Yes, Ma'am" Jackson walked past Jewel and flew away.

The sound of Jackson wings flapping was drowned out by silence. Roberto and Jewel just stood in the hollow.

"How long were you there?" Roberto asked, daring not to look Jewel in the eye. He screwed up again.

"Long enough."

"I sound like a jerk don't I?"

"I don't care what you sound like, it has been two weeks since Blu disappeared and I know a rescue search only lasts for the same time. But if you had a chance to save Blu, why didn't you take it?"

Roberto leaned against a wall and hung his head low.

 _You coward! First you have a nervous breakdown in front of Blu when the loggers came, then you lost Jewels kids, and now this. Blu has more courageousness than you do! You coward!_

The word spun around in his head like a record, replaying itself. _Coward, coward, coward._

The silence between the two only lasted for a few seconds, but it seemed like an hour.

"I-I trusted you!"

His head still hung low, he knew that Jewel was right. Jackson was right too. Why did it sound so different when Jewel said the same words than when Jackson did.

"Jewel I don't know where Blu is, Jackson could be wrong about the whole thing. I didn't want to risk following the truck to wherever it was going. We tried but it didn't work, I'm sorry."

"Listen, Roberto. I think Jackson was right, it is better if I try to look for Blu myself from now on."

"Jewel-"

"I mean it."

Jewel flew away, leaving Roberto there inside the hollow alone.


	15. Icecubes

"Time, that's all I need. Time." Linda brushed through the her hand written speech, adjusted her glasses and fixed her black suit that she almost swore to herself she would never wear. A black skirt adorned her legs and a red shirt under the black business suit.

"I pray for you Linda. If you think that Evan and the rest of the bureaucrats were crazy, wait until you meet the media." Mauri assured her from not too far off.

"Stop scaring her, they aren't wolves you know." Tulio stepped in.

"Oh yeah? You wanna test that theory? Why don't you go out there yourself and see how it is!"

"I refuse to take you up on that offer!"

"Exactly!"

"Neither of you are helping, you know that!" Linda was frantic, her voice wavering just a little.

"Don't worry mom, you'll do fine!" Fernando assured his mother. He practically begged Tulio and Linda to bring him, this was after all a special occasion.

"Oh you are right. What do I have to worry about? They are human after all, aren't they?" Linda hugged Fernando, who had grown just a bit taller than she had.

"What do you consider a _human_ is? Compared to us normal people, those _things_ are reptiles in suits!"

"MAURI! YOU'RE NOT HELPING!" Everybody yelled at him almost at once.

"Sorry."

Linda returned to the mirror.

"How do I look?" She asked.

"Like a million dollars." Tulio grabbed her shoulders and turned her around to face him.

"Look, you are going to go out there, and you are going to give the speech of your life! You are going to do so good, that those people will melt in their seats. Like icecubes, Linda. Icecubes." Tulio said.

"Yes, I will! I can do this!"

"Yes you can!"

"You are right!"

"Of course I am."

Linda gave a playful yet serious elbow to Tulio's side.

"Mrs. Gunderson, the press is ready!" A woman called out from behind the door.

Linda and Tulio shared a quick kiss, and Linda walked off into the sea of reporters and cameramen.

Everyone watched as the door slid shut behind her.

"I'll prepare her casket. How tall is she?" Mauri laughed.

"Shut up, go make yourself useful and go out there and help her!" Tulio said.

"Right away sir!"

Linda walked up to the podium and instantly a flashes of cameras were sparkling like a million diamonds.

She was starting to have second thoughts about doing this after all. She shut her eyes and tried to keep her cool.

 _Icecubes, Linda. Icecubes._

 _I will melt them, that's right!_

Linda took her speech written inside of a folder out and then looked at the hundreds of cameras in the room.

She took a big breath in, and started.

"Thank you all for coming, this is a first in human history to witness communication by English language between Human and animal. And it is certainly an event that shouldn't be missed. Currently Blu, the macaw that we have in interest, is making his way towards the Brazilian-Uruguay borderline. And so far we have been able to send and receive messages from the macaw himself. Any questions?"

Another array of flashing lights, reporters raised their hands and called out her name.

"Yes, you right there." Linda pointed to a tall fellow, clean haven who wore a brown suit.

"Mrs. Gunderson, I'm Jebediah Smith working for CNN. What does this mean for the study of animal intelligence? Could this mean that animals can build a civilization like ours?" Jebediah asked. The reporters and journalists around him liked the question and nodded their heads.

"Well… at least we understand that they are capable of understanding how Human society works. Again Blu is an exception to all the animals that we have studied, considering that he is the only one who has shown this level of intellect, even among other Blue Macaws. Next question."

Linda chose a fat dark skinned man in the center of the audience.

"Mrs. Gunderson, The New York Times would like to know, isn't the Blue Macaw species close to extinction?"

"Yes, in fact there is high hopes that Blu could be the one to help save his species."

The rest of the press conference went like this, and Linda was the captain of her boat. She aced the conference.

When everything was over Tulio gave her a thumbs up from backstage. Linda smiled, maybe this wasn't so bad after all.

"She is lucky you know, they would've killed her given the right subject." Mauri said.

"Indeed."


	16. A Caravan of Oddballs

"We are almost there. Only a few hours now." Blu looked up from the GPS screen.

"Finally my paws are killing me! Not to mention that a few of you could afford to lose some weight!" Clyde looked at the birds that were perched on his back.

"Are you calling me fat?" Diante yelled at him.

"Well I'm not calling you over for dinner!"

"Shut up!"

"Almost, we are almost there. Just try not to kill each other yet!" Aberdeen said in a quite husky voice, as she looked up at the sky. As much as it was a battle to survive in the forest, it was also a battle to survive with each other. Not even three days passed yet and already everybody is planning on how to murder the other in their sleep. They were not becoming good friends.

Except for Blu, everybody liked Blu. Except for Diante, but everybody hated Diante.

The forest began to thin out and houses began appearing more frequently. The GPS alerted the group out loud.

"You are now entering Rivera"

"Finally! We made it in one piece." Julius said.

"What are you complaining for? You rode on my back the whole time, I did all the walking!" Clyde yelled at Julius.

"Are you kidding me? I am doing the most work! Don't you know that your back isn't the most comfortable place on the planet!"

"Then walk for yourself!"

"Guys! Stop it!" Blu yelled at the two of them.

Julius and Clyde exchanged mean glances at the other, and stopped feuding. For now.

The houses of the suburban town of Rivera became more and more common, Roads appeared in places where the jungle vanished, people walked down sidewalks, trucks on the roads honking their horns, a church bell.

The group of animals stumbled upon a wire fence. Beyond the fence was the City of Rivera. Slipping under the fence (a difficult task for Clyde because of his size) landed them onto the sidewalk of a busy road. Cars and trucks and people, and dogs all traveled along the sidewalk and asphalt, a few stopped and looked at the group.

The group of animals had gotten quite famous on the internet, and a few people recognized them. Often pulling their cars over for a good look or taking out their phones to get a video of them.

"¡Mira! Son los animales que estaban en la televisión! (Look! It's the animals that were on the TV)" The people would often say.

"Why is everybody acting so strange around us?" Diante asked, after a woman nearly passed out finding the birds.

Blu shrugged his shoulders (I think birds have those), and continued to the lead the caravan of oddballs through the city.

Finally, it seemed like their legs could not carry them any longer. So they stopped in the middle of a park, looking to find a place to spend the rest of the day. Everybody went around the area looking for a nest to sojourn inside of.

"Anybody know what there is to eat around here?" Blu the group, while he was judging whether or not a tree branch was okay to sleep on.

Everybody looked at Clyde.

"What?" Clyde asked, confused as to why everybody was looking at him.

"How did you get us food the last time?" Julius asked.

"Well… I mean… I can't do that all the time you know. It's kinda embarrassing."

"Come on! It can't be that bad!" Aberdeen said, while inside of a tree hollow she had claimed for herself.

"Yeah, I mean what's worst, being embarrassed, or dying from hunger?" Diante chuckled to himself, while he investigated a hole inside of a tree close by the floor.

"You aren't dying from hunger." Clyde retorted.

"I will be if you don't find us something to eat!"

"I don't have to do anything! I am not your slave, or pet that you can use whenever you feel like it!"

"But you are domesticated by Humans, so yeah, you are a pet." Diante laughed to himself.

Clyde hissed at him, he extended his claws and bared his sharp teeth.

"GAH!" Diante shrieked, and disappeared into a bush.

Clyde chuckled to himself, "That's what you deserve, you bloody idiot!" A little of his English dialect coming through.

"Not fair! You have sharp claws and teeth, and are nearly ten times my size." Diante said, still in a bush.

Clyde retracted his claws and continued to look for a spot to sleep.

"Seriously, what are we going to eat? My stomach has been talking to me, and it doesn't have any nice words to say!" Julius said inside of an abandoned bee hive.

By now both Blu and Diante were sure Julius was mental. But whatever.

"I don't know, maybe there is something around here! Hey, I can look on the GPS and see if a restaurant is anywhere nearby here. Maybe we can pick something out from there." Blu said.

The Caravan of Oddballs (I'm sorry, I started now I can't stop), agreed that was a good idea. They decided to split in half. Blu, Clyde and Aberdeen would go and find food, while Diante and Julius stayed behind.

Julius because he is crazy, and Diante because somebody needs to make sure Julius doesn't kill himself by accident, and because his wing is broken.

Of course Diante wasn't too happy about this.

"You are leaving me here, with him?!" Diante pointed his good wing in a accusing manner at Julius.

"It can't be that bad! What's the worst that can happen?" Aberdeen asked him.

"Yeah, but he is insane, I can't babysit him!"

"You're not babysitting him, you are staying behind because your wing is broken." Clyde said.

"And because you need somebody to be held liable if something happens to him!" Diante said.

" _No, because I just don't like you."_ Clyde muttered under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, just singing a song. That's all."

"Whatever. I just can't stay here!" Diante nearly begged everybody.

Blu decided to settle this once and for all,"Okay, let's take a poll. If you think Diante should stay here with Julius, raise your wing or paw." Aberdeen, Blu, and Clyde raised theirs.

"If you are against it.."

Julius and Diante.

"3-2. We win, you stay! Say, Julius, how come you voted against Diante?" Clyde asked.

"He is mean!"

"Yes, he is." Clyde smirked at Diante, followed by laughter from Blu and Aberdeen.

Diante sighed and let out a groan, looking up at the sky "I am really starting to hate you guys. You know that."

"Come on Diante! Think of it as you doing us a favor," Aberdeen hugged Diante close to her with one wing. Diante thought that it was magical, but Aberdeen thought of it nothing more than just a gesture friends do.

 _Wow, she is surprisingly soft. Wait, what?_

Blu saw the look in Diante's eyes. He gave a superior grin.

Diante didn't even see him, he himself was lost in the hug that only lasted for a second.

"We will bring back food, and all you have to do is sit your butt down somewhere and make sure Julius doesn't get kidnapped or something." Aberdeen joked around.

"Uh- yeah-okay. I-I can do that. I think."

"Good, then it's settled. Let's go!" Clyde said turning around and heading out of the park, Blu and Aberdeen following suit.

Diante's eyes followed them out of the park until they disappeared, especially Aberdeen. The way her yellow feathers seemingly sparkled, hypnotized him. He shook himself out of it and turned his attention to Julius.

"Hope Blu doesn't find out about this."

 **Caravan of Oddballs. Hehe, I'm gonna say that more often.**


	17. Congratulations

**Guys! I have really good news, some good news, and really bad news. The bad news is, my internet connection is really slow for some reason. I have no idea why, so I haven't been playing Fortnite recently. Good news is, since I haven't been playing Fortnite so much, I have more time to write for you guys.**

 **And are you all ready for the REALLY GOOD NEWS.**

 **Are you sure?**

 **Okay, drumroll please!**

 **(Drumroll commences*)**

 **We have hit over 1,000 views on Rio 3 Remastered! Hooray! This is OFFICIALLY THE FASTEST GROWING STORY I HAVE EVER MADE.**

 **Now normally I would insert some cheesy one-liner like-it wouldn't have been possible without you guys! Or -You guys have really made this story great. Hopefully we can make this the best on FFN, or something like that. And it is true, you guys helped so much.**

 **Monsterjamvadim: Dude, thanks for letting me know of a better way to structure my chapters.**

 **Pableroski: thanks for helping me on my Spanish language, you really helped doing that.**

 **Rio2lover: Thank you for all the great reviews you left. I mean really though, you are dedicated.**

 **And everybody else who is reading this: Thank you for 1,000 views.**

 **You guys really are the best! Now I also have to say that I think (this is opinionated of course) that I have become a better writer since I created Rio 3. I am glad that I rewrote the story. In fact I am overjoyed. I think that 3 or 4 month vacation to the Starbound Fanfiction archive has really paid off, and I have been reading a lot of books.**

 **When I say A LOT of books. I mean actual books, not Fanfiction. Enders Game, The Martian, Fahrenheit 451°, A book about apartheid in South Africa, and I think they have given me better skills. A way to actually write.**

 **So I won't keep you here for too long, but I just had to get it out. So thank you!**

 **Ps: Keep the suggestions coming. If there is anything I need to work on just let me know. I grow as a writer that way and in turn I can provide a better story for you.**

* * *

Roberto moped around the village, he hadn't been discredited by Jackson or Jewel yet but he felt like a complete…

A complete what?

A jerk towards Jackson, a coward perhaps? Yeah, that was it. A coward.

Never had he wished Blu to disappear like that out of nowhere, he had liked him. As a friend, but how come he couldn't save his friend.

Now he has nobody, not a friend, not a relative, nobody. Even driving away Jewel, who was already heartbroken.

He had to make it up, he had already given up the search for Blu, there was nothing he could do about that? What was he supposed to do? Look for a dead body, that was probably somewhere in the belly of some beast of the jungle?

But he had to say sorry somehow. One way or another, he couldn't live with himself if everybody hated him. He especially had to apologize to Jewel, his lifelong friend. But how?

He picked up a mango and flew over to Jewels hollow, then he remembered that Jewel was a sojourner at Eduardo's hollow, so he flew over there instead.

When he arrived, Eduardo wasn't there, but Jewel was. Asleep.

Bia, Carla, and Tiago were all asleep inside of their mother's arms. He decided to just leave the mango next to her, and put one of his feathers on top of it so she knew it was him.

He then flew off.

Jewel woke up not too long after, and the first thing she did was make sure the triplets were okay. They always managed to put a smile on her face, no matter what.

Then she noticed the mango. And Roberto's feather.

 _Strange, I wonder what Roberto wants? Maybe he just wanted to apologize._

Jewel carefully lifted herself up, not daring to wake up any of the three kids, and flew over to Roberto's hollow.

She landed not too long after. And saw Roberto inside, just sitting down not doing much.

"Hi Roberto! Thanks for the mango." Jewel said when she entered.

"Oh, yeah it was no problem. Thanks for coming. I wanted to _talk_ to you." Roberto was getting straight to the point.

"About what?" Jewel was already pretty sure what Roberto wanted to tell her.

"Jewel, I just wanted to tell you, I am sorry. Really I am. I can't live with myself if everybody hates me, I mean I'm not Diante!"

Jewel giggled a little at the Diante joke.

"But in all seriousness I truly am. And I want to make it up to you somehow." Roberto said, putting a wing around Jewel.

"You can't just make it up to me Roberto. I am not mad at you Roberto, I am upset that I lost Blu. Unless you can bring Blu back from wherever he is, maybe then you could. But Roberto you just have to know that I am not mad at you." Jewel said.

Roberto didn't believe her.

"Look, I promised to Blu something when we first met each other. I would watch over his family if anything happened to him. And you know I don't like to break my promises. So from now on, I vow to you, that I will help do anything I can."

Jewel was touched, but she knew Blu wouldn't necessarily approve of it. She knew Blu was the more, Jealous type. He wouldn't want Roberto to basically replace him as a stepfather. Blu and Roberto weren't enemies or anything, they were actually good friends now, but it would still be a little taboo.

It was a tempting offer, but Jewel would have to refuse. But somebody to help take care of the triplets would be nice.

Eduardo has his own work to do, Mimi has hers. They couldn't babysit the children everytime she went to collect food. Speaking of which she had to hurry home before they get hurt.

"Thank you, I am touched really. But I am sorry, I can't accept."

She saw the dejected look in Roberto's eyes.

"It isn't you! I promise! But I know that Blu wouldn't approve, even if he was… dead. And I can't violate that."

"Its not like we are in love or anything!" Roberto protested.

"Yeah, but still. It's taboo. I shouldn't… no… I can't accept. Sorry. Especially since Blu may still be alive."

"I understand, Jewel, but you have to listen to me! You have three hungry mouths to feed. I could tell it was hard enough when Blu was here. But now that you are all by yourself, you can't do this alone."

Jewel didn't want to refuse, but she found it really hard to accept. Roberto could tell, so he made another offer.

"Look, if Blu doesn't show up in two months, you have to at least try." Roberto said.

"I… I'll think about it."

Jewel flew away, leaving Roberto alone again.

Jewel contemplated the offer on her way home. Roberto was right, they weren't in love, so it wasn't like anything would happen between them. And all Roberto was doing was just helping to watch over the kids while she went to find food. It wasn't like he was replacing their father.

But would Blu really approve of it? Probably not. She shook her head and continued on.


	18. Dumpster Diving

The GPS rang again. Tulio had been sending hundreds of messages to Blu. Telling him to this, advising him to do that, seeing if this would work.

His latest message asked Blu was a weird one. " _What is it like, being a bird?"_

How was he supposed to answer that question?

" _Okay, I guess?"_ He replied.

Aberdeen, Clyde, and Blu all were out in the city, looking for something to eat. Blu and Aberdeen were perched on Clyde's back.

As they were walking Blu got a good look at Aberdeen. She was normal, but he really needed to tell her something.

He kind of giggled and let out a smirk before he opened his beak.

"Aberdeen?"

"Hmm?"

"You know he likes you?"

"Wait what? Who?" Aberdeen put on a confused look.

"Diante."

That didn't help.

"Diante? He likes me? As a friend?" Aberdeen asked.

"Something more than a friend. A close companion, maybe even as a girlfriend."

"Are you and I talking about the same Diante?"

"Let me guess. A green color with red feathers around his eyes, kind of stupid acting, a little bit of a jackass?"

"That's him." Aberdeen closed her eyes and leaned back.

"I mean… I guess… I guess he is cute."

Both Blu and Clyde, who up to this point wasn't paying attention to the conversation, were shocked. Did she really say that? Maybe they were imagining things.

"Listen Aberdeen, did I just hear you call Diante- _cute?_ " Clyde asked.

"I think so. I mean I've never had a… Boyfriend so I wouldn't know how this kind of stuff works. But if he likes me like that, then I like him too."

"You are a very honest woman Aberdeen. You know that?" Blu said.

"I try my best."

A kind of awkward silence followed for a while. They still had to find something to eat, so Clyde stopped in front of a restaurant. But of course, restaurants don't allow animals to dine inside. Not like they had any money to pay, anyway. So they went to the back of it. A dumpster sat there.

"Are we really about to go dumpster diving for food?" Blu asked, he started to dry heave a little just thinking about it.

"Either that, or we starve. Who knows, we might find something good in here." Clyde said, already on the rim of the dumpster while Aberdeen and Blu watched from below.

Aberdeen turned to Blu.

"I guess he is right. We might as well get started." Aberdeen said, not moving a inch.

"Oh, yeah. Ladies first."

"Thank you, but really, I think you should go first."

"Well, see, I am not really that hungry. You must be starving, you go ahead."

"Umm-"

"Neither of you are getting food any faster by stalling." Clyde interrupted the two of them, already deep inside looking for anything he can eat.

"Clyde you are one dirty cat." Blu said, as he and Aberdeen flew over to the edge of the dumpster.

And before Blu knew it, he was inside of the dumpster. The most foul smelling place he has ever been to. Looking for something to eat.

Sorting through the plastic bags, there was bread with blue mold on it, a spoiled pizza, soggy potatoes, a couple of perfectly good bottles of water and all the rest of the stuff was inedible.

They wrapped it all in a bag, hailed it over Clyde and began the journey back to the park.

Meanwhile, inside of the park, Diante was getting to know Julius a little better.

"So, Julius, how come you act so crazy?" Diante asked as the two sat inside of a hollow waiting.

Julius shrugged his shoulders, "I am not crazy. I am… childish."

"I've never heard a child say that the moon is made of cheese."

"But it is made of cheese!"

"If the moon was made of cheese, it would be spoiled. And the entire world would smell like spoiled milk!"

"But space!"

"Don't bring up that excuse!"

Yes, Diante and Julius were having a legitimate argument about whether or not the moon was made out of cheese. Maybe they were both crazy.

Either way, at least they were friends. A first for Diante.

"You are one weird person you know that?" Julius squinted his eyes at Diante and pointed his wing feather at him.

"I'm the weird one? You should be the last one talking!"

"But you are. You are like, a ego-maniac but at the same time you allow you self to get into arguments over the dumbest of things!"

"I am not a ego-maniac."

"Yes you are! Admit it!" Julius grew a smile as he teased Diante.

"Shut up." Diante had no choice but to smile and laugh at his own pain. Maybe he did have a ego that was a bit too high.

"No matter. You still intend to do the right thing, but you just can't accept that you are wrong sometimes." Julius continued.

"I'm telling you. The moon isn't made of cheese."

"Not about that. I'm talking about the arguments you have with Blu."

"Me and Blu don't argue. He is just being a idiot."

"Technically you are arguing right now."

"And what does he know? Why is he the one that is right?"

"There goes your ego."

Diante clicked his tongue. Rolled his eyes, turned around.

"I am telling you, I do not have a ego!"

"There it goes. You can't even accept that."

Diante sighed as he sat down. He knew Julius was right. He wasn't going to admit it. But he knew Julius could tell that he knew he was wrong (I am sorry if that sentence was a bit confusing. I don't have any other way to type that).

The two spent the next half hour, or so, just talking. When the rest of the group finally came back.

"We are back! Finally." Aberdeen said at the top of her lungs.

"Great, what did you guys get?"

Clyde set the sack of rotten food down on the floor. Diante and Julius both peered inside.

After getting over the initial shock of how bad the food looked, that's when Diante started feeling sick.

"I-I'm not hungry anymore."

"Come on. It won't kill you." Clyde assured him.

"Are you sure?"

"No. But if you die, that's one less person that we have to try and feed!" Clyde laughed.

"Ha-ha very funny. You are a riot you know that?" Diante said sarcastically.

"Lets dig in!" Blu said.

The food was wretched, but at least it didn't kill anybody. Well it almost killed Blu, but everybody else was fine.


	19. Late Nights in Toronto are something

**Okay, let me get one thing clear. If and when Diante and Aberdeen become a couple, their name is not going to be shipped as Dianterdeen. You should feel ashamed for that, how dare you XD.**

 **All jokes aside, I was thinking something more along the lines lime Aberante. The first four letters in Aberdeen and the last four of Diante. But Aberante so like the name of some mystical super heroes from Mexico or something. Just saying.**

 **Hope y'all enjoy. Dianterdeen, of all the craziest things I have ever heard XD.**

Night, the moon hung over the skies of Toronto like some sort of Christmas decoration. A full moon, no stars in the sky, but Toronto didn't need the light from the stars. It made its own light, hundreds of buildings, brightly illuminated, even at this hour.

Tulio for one, wasn't so happy about staying up this late. Observing two computer screens, one that showed the GPS location of Blu over a map of South America, and the other screen where he could contact him through the GPS.

He had been staring at computer screens for hours, and he was exhausted. Evan didn't seem to care, more tasks came from Tulio's inbox, and that meant that he had to stay up a extra hour. If he did this too many more times, Tulio might just pass out.

He conducted a series of tests on a bird feather, to try and figure out the main components of it, and if it helped the bird fly. Running a fan over the feather gave a breeze to see how the feather reacted and changed. A seemingly pointless experiment.

It was pointless indeed, and boring, and Tulio was tired. He got up from his computer desk, set to go back to the hotel. Despite it nearing 12:00 AM, the building was still full of activity. People in business attire walked to and fro, to conduct various tasks all over the place. Tulio walked through a crowd of businessmen as he went to Evans office, to tell him he was going home.

He neared it and the door was closed. Strange, Evan's office door was never closed. He walked up to it and was about to knock on the door when he heard voices coming from inside. A private meeting it sounded like, and whoever was inside sounded like they really did not want to be disturbed.

Three people, it sounded like. Evans voice among them, a female and another male. They were talking about something.

 _I'll just wait until they finish._ Tulio said as he backed away from the room. But then he heard something that made him stay.

It was about Blu. And it wasn't good.

"…I am sending somebody to intercept him when he crosses over to the Brazilian city of Pelotas." The voice belonged to Evan.

"But the media has almost 24/7 coverage on Blu's location. Wouldn't they get suspicious?" The female voice asked.

"Yeah, that group of animals have gotten a large amount of attention. People want to see them make it."

"Play it off, like we saved them. People will believe anything." Evan said.

Tulio stepped away from the room, he quickly ran towards the GPS and messaging screen in his own office and sent a quick message to Blu.

" _Do not enter the City of Pelotas. A ambush is waiting there for you, go around."_ It didn't explain much, but Tulio hoped Blu got the message.

Tulio didn't even stop at Evans office door this time, he quickly pushed past everybody and left the building. He hopped into his car and began the drive back home.

The drive to the hotel was only fifteen minutes. But it seemed like hours. Tulio was exhausted, he drove through the empty streets as he pulled into the parking lot of the hotel.

He was worried about Blu. Now he knew that Evan was officially after him.

After he checked in, he entered the doors of the hotel room. Linda and Fernando were both asleep, Linda had to deal with the media again. Mauri wasn't too wrong about them. Who knew that BBC news and NBC hated each other so much? To the point where reporters drew guns on each other?

Good thing there were police in that situation, Linda might not have made it back home if it want for them.

So Linda was just as exhausted as Tulio. And Fernando had the most amount of work out of everybody. He delivered everybody's essential things, delivering speeches to Linda and her coffee and giving Tulio his research papers and other things. He ran back and forth from the conference room to Tulio's office building all day. Well not really, after the two reporters nearly shot each other the police locked the entire building down for a few hours after arresting the two.

Really though. You would sacrifice your liberty just to get a good headline for a news channel that only old people watch. Like get a life.

Tulio's presence awoke the both of them. And after greeting them he talked to Blu. Or texted him on the computer.

Blu wrote a confused reply.

" _What? Why? What ambush? I need more details."_ Blu responded.

" _There are a group of hippies who know of your presence in the area, they will capture you once you enter the city of Pelotas."_

" _Okay. Any news from society?"_

" _You became a world famous icon."_

" _Really?"_

" _Yeah, everybody back home is rooting for you. We have news reporters from as far away as Beijing, Moscow, Berlin, London, and Cape Town trying to get just a single picture of you. We have recently published your live location feed on ABC and CBS news. CNN has dedicated a half hour of their show just to you, and it gets over 10 million views. Everybody knows who you are Blu."_

" _Wow really?"_

" _You don't believe me? NASA has dedicated their space satellite, Iris, tracking you down. Iris is a roman goddess of rainbows by the way."_

" _Understood. NASA has a gay space probe watching me from the sky. Seriously are you scientist okay in the mental department?"_

" _There are times."_

" _Anything else from civilization?"_

" _Oh the president of The United States called yesterday. He says that he wants you to join his political party. Um, Oprah Winfrey also wished you good luck. The New York Jets beat the Dallas Cowboys in a home victory. F.C. Barcelona lost to Real Madrid 2-1. And some other unimportant stuff that doesn't really matter."_

" _What?! Say that again!"_

" _What, about the president?"_

" _No, the New York Jets actually beat the Cowboys? How?"_

" _I don't feel like explaining."_

" _It feels good to talk to someone outside of this little group I am with. Be in contact with society, you know?"_

" _You can talk to other animals right? How are the rest of the animals in your group doing? It is my job as a scientist to ask."_

" _I wanna see you get fired, I won't tell."_

" _Aw come on, no fair."_

" _Good night Tulio."_

" _Same"_

Blu didn't leave anymore messages that night. Talking to a bird didn't feel like, talking to a bird. It felt like talking to a close friend, someone you can just talk crap to and laugh with. He didn't expect that from a bird, and neither does Evan. All Evan sees is a research experiment. But Blu isn't a experiment, he isn't a toy you can just wind up and observe walking. If anything Blu seemed more human in nature than Evan did.


	20. Everything, Anything

**Sorry for the delay in this chapter. My internet came back on and I have been playing fortnite all day.**

 **I haven't gone to sleep in at least four days now, I haven't eaten or drunken any water, I apparently don't need to pass highschool anymore. My fortnite marathon may or may not be getting a little out of control. The only reason why I am writing this is because I died, and I realized "life sucks" so all my pain and suffering from all the times I lost victory royale is going into this chapter.**

 **Hope you guys enjoy, because I can't grab a cup of water since I lost all feeling in my legs. Wait…**

* * *

Jewel caught her breath on a tree branch. The Amazon sun rose high in the sky and it was sweltering.

She was well outside of tribal territory, venturing out past the Scarlet Macaws boundaries, and reach as far as the highlands. The river cut a valley through the steep bluffs and hills. The land of the flamingos and falcons. They live close to the river banks and in places where the river forms ponds or lakes on the shore.

Jewel knew the falcons here didn't eat macaws, preferring a mouse or rabbit, and other creatures that can't fight back. But she was going to try and avoid Falcon territory just in case one of them gets especially hungry.

Macaws flew here often, sometimes the lack of food often promoted a search party to find some here. Food was always abundant in this territory. The competition for fruits and Brazil nuts was far less than in the Blue Macaw Territory, in all essence it wasn't their land either. It was technically 'leased' to them by the Scarlet macaws.

Jewel would have no problem finding food here to prolong her search. And so long as she traveled the opposite direction that the sun was moving, she should be able to plot out her course. She would have been able to travel by night, if she had paid attention to her father's lessons in navigating by starlight.

No matter, she paid attention when he taught her about the sun, and she was happy about it. She set out for this land when she left as a checkpoint, to make sure she was going the right direction, and she was.

Now for the important task at hand. Finding Blu. It has been about a month since Blu was lost to the river current. Which meant that if he remained in the river the entire time, his body should be somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean. Not good, for obvious reasons. So she had to bet on him being able to climb out of the river by himself.

She wasn't as good at mathematics as Blu was, but she could reason that it would take less than a day before Blu drowns in the river. Which means that he would have had to get out the morning after the fight with Diante.

Which meant that if he got out of the river at that time, he should have gotten out somewhere in this territory. Or just beyond. No macaw has ever purposefully ventured out, beyond the highlands. Creatively named, The Badlands. The land of predation on creatures like the Blue Macaw.

It would have been to risky to try and look for Blu in that region. Eduardo warned her of that before she left. So here was a good start.

Landing besides the river bed, she began her search. First she would search along the river edge, and then venture deeper into the highlands, until she reached the cliff faces of either of the hills. If there was no sign of him, she would have to look upstream.

It took her five exhaustive hours for her to find something that might give her hope. Tracks.

She landed at a stretch of the coast, full of sand and fallen tree trunks. Pebbles, algae and other such things also carpeted the river floor. But she was able to see them. The footprints of a macaw, or rather, the talon prints.

They were about the size of Blu's talons. A good sign. But there was a second set of them too, about the same size but slightly different in shape. She couldn't tell if they belonged to a macaw or not, but at least she had a lead.

The two pairs of foot prints led all the way to the water edge. There was real evidence Blu was there. The sand and pebbles were disturbed in a way that made it look like something the size of a macaw had been dragged onto the shore. The pair of talon prints that she wasn't sure of, was there. Likely pulling Blu out of the water. Either to rescue him, or to eat him.

But these marks could have been anything. It was a month since Blu fell into the river, anything could have caused that between then and now. If it wasn't for what she saw next.

Feathers. Blue feathers. The Blu feathers of her one and only.

There they were, accompanied by the trail of talon prints. His feathers were on the ground, accompanied by what could have been his tracks. Blu didn't disappear in the ricer after all! There was hope!

She was so happy, that she nearly passed out. But that wouldn't have been the smart thing to do, not here. Besides, this didn't mean Blu was alive. What it meant was, if he didn't die in the river, he could have gotten eaten on the land.

But there was also hope that he was alive. Jewel sat down and breathed a sigh of relief. Things were finally going to plan, her heart yearned to find her beloved. And she would look for years to find him. If there was a chance that he was alive, she would take the chance and try her best to find him.

She felt the feather, it was exactly like Blu's own, soft, not too brittle. The correct shade of royal blue. She took note of how his feathers felt every time she spooned with him in their nest when he was still there. Time like those motivated her only to keep going.

But there was another pair of feathers. Not Blu's. One green feather and one red. Only one person could have been the owner of them, Diante. It meant Diante was alive with Blu. Good and bad.

Bad; she really wanted Diante to die in a fiery death. Or in this case drown in the river.

Good; somebody is there to help Blu survive, somebody with experience in the outdoors.

She wasn't as excited to find them as she did Blu's feathers. But she wasn't going to burn them in a fire. It meant the second pair of tracks belonged to Diante.

She followed the tracks, they went pretty far inland. If she followed the trail it would take hours by foot. So she flew, and she got really far back to the village. So close, just outside the village boundaries, is when the trail ended.

Jewel looked at the sudden disappearance of the trail of talon prints. But then she saw it.

A human footprint, multiple of them. And it looked like they captured Blu. The footprints led all the way to a clearing, where there where long marks on the ground that were parallel to each other. Like some sort of snake. She remember Blu showing her a car, that must have been what got him. The humans put him a car and drive off.

She justified this by following the tire treads onto a highway, where there here multiple cars and trucks of all types. This couldn't have happened. Blu was so close to getting back to the village, and then the Humans got him again.

She fell to her knees and started to weep. Blu tried to get back home, but now, odds are that Jewel will never see her husband again. Just as her life was going so well, she finally settled down, had the perfect family, found her own parents and tribe, and then the humans…. No.

Diante

Had to ruin things! How she cursed his name, how she threw every slur in the dictionary towards him, how she wanted to grab the sharpest rock that she could and stab Diante mercilessly, to taste his blood while he cried out for help! She fumed with rage at Diante, cursing the Humans and the river, and Diante… cursed him to the fiery pits of hell!

And then she stopped. In an instant. She snapped out of it, no emotion showed over her face, in less than a second. She just stopped, and stood still.

" _Linda always told me, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade!"_

" _But Blu, how am I supposed to make lemonade with no sugar?"_

" _Okay… lemon juice. It's the same thing."_

" _Would you drink lemon juice Blu?"_

" _It isn't as bad as you think it is."_

" _So you really just squeeze lemons into your mouth, and drink that?"_

" _Well I don't just do that. I get a cup."_

" _You are a riot."_

" _I guess we both are. We are having a full on discussion about whether or not lemon juice tastes good."_

Jewel could almost feel the kiss Blu gave her after that was done. How she missed how she would just be able to talk about anything with him. Anything, everything, that thing, this thing, a subject that not even the closest of friends would talk of because it is so weird, vile, taboo. But she could talk of it freely with him, and not feel ashamed. She was never ashamed when she was around him.

She was never angry, or sad, or tired, or this or that. She was happy. And how she wanted to just be happy now. A taste is all.

" _You only miss the light when it's burning low_

 _You only miss the sun when it starts to snow_

 _You only know you love her when you let her go…"_

" _Blu what kind of song is that?"_

" _Don't hate."_

" _And by 'her' I hope you are talking about me."_

" _Always."_

" _I love you."_

" _I love you too, Jewel."_

She regretted cursing Diante. She regretted the desire she had to drink his blood, she regretted the plans of murder, the torture she would bring him through, the pain that he brought her through.

It was lonely. When Jewel got this angry, Blu was always there to help cheer her up, or comfort her.

" _I hate him for this!"_

" _Why are you so angry?"_

" _You don't want to know."_

" _I really do." Blu put on a silly voice when he said the word 'really'._

" _Some guy decided it would be a good idea to throw a rock at the sky, it came back down and hit me!"_

" _What? I say we hang him!"_

" _Blu…"_

" _We burn his house down!"_

" _Blu I don't think…"_

" _Hit him with a left fist!"_

" _Blu (chuckles) I thought you were a pacifist…"_

" _Get him with a right!"_

" _Blu you can stop now!"_

" _I was only joking darling."_

" _Okay good, I thought you were serious."_

" _Oh no I was serious about burning down his home. But beating him up is unnecessary."_

" _Oh good, I was worried for a minute."_

" _You need not worry about me Jewel, after all I wasn't the one who was hit by a rock!"_

" _Keep talking and I will kick you where the light doesn't shine!"_

" _Sorry."_

" _I am only joking Blu."_

" _I know."_

Good times.


	21. That Dragon named Love

The group was traveling by night. The GPS directing them how to get to their destination, wrapping around Pelotas to avoid ambush, and to continue on.

They were all tired, walking for the entire day, non stop. Only for their ration of breakfast and that was it for the entire day. They were starving, tired, and dirty. All of them. Not a hour passed since they left the city of Rivers, had a thunderstorm encroached upon them, drenching them in mud and rainwater.

At least they were able to refill the water canisters they collected from the previous city. So they wouldn't die of thirst.

Both Clyde and Aberdeen were seriously regretting their decision of helping Blu and Diante get back home. They could be anywhere, anyplace, but here. It wasn't too late to abandon ship. Especially for Aberdeen, since she could fly. But then they would have to leave Blu and Diante out on their own. They wanted to… no they _needed_ to help them get back home.

If you see a lost child on the street you will try your best to help them home, what's the difference between a child and these two?

A fairly big difference. But there was another reason, Julius was loving every second of it. The whole 'living in mud' 'exploring the forest' and 'taming the jungle' ideas really started to manifest in Julius's mind. And he wasn't going to give this up for city life, no way ever. And Clyde and Aberdeen couldn't abandon family.

So they trudged on, like valiant soldiers in the jungle. Following two strange birds and a handheld computer. And fate.

"So, you guys know each other?" Diante strikes up a conversation while they were walking.

"What do you mean?" Clyde asked.

"You, Aberdeen, and Julius. You guys just friends, or family?"

"Clyde and Julius are like brothers to me. Been with me ever since childhood."

"Yeah. Me and Aberdeen first met when my Human introduced her to me as a baby bird, and when I was still a kitten. Then we befriended Julius later on." Clyde let a smile grow on his face, as he recalled his kittenhood with his half-sister.

"How come you and your Human are together now?" Blu asked.

That knocked the smile off Clyde's face. Aberdeen answered instead.

"Well, he… he left to go to work one day, left the two of us alone. Just like any other day. And… he never came back."

"What happened to him?"

"I think he might've died. I saw a newspaper headline about a man who was hit by a bus and didn't get back up. I am not sure." Clyde said.

They fell silent.

Nobody dare spoke a word after that, to be polite or to not seem insensitive. But the silence was ever more awkward.

A soft grumble came from the sky. Everybody knew what that meant.

"We gotta walk a little faster. It is coming back around." Blu said after he looked up at the sky.

"What is coming back around?" Julius asked.

"The storm. We will be drenched above our knees in rain and mud if we don't hurry." Diante said.

"I think we should came here. We rest here, let the storm pass over and ahead of us. That way in the morning, we will be traveling behind it." Clyde stopped in his tracks.

"Good idea." They unloaded all the containers of food (a scarce few that they collected from around the city of Rivera. Mostly from dumpsters and begging from Humans) and built a rudimentary shelter. A makeshift tent of sorts.

They were all able to fit inside, but privacy deemed that it wouldn't happen. So they created three. One for Julius, Clyde and Aberdeen (they were used to sleeping in each others company) one for Blu, and the last for Diante.

Blu created a fire with instructions from Tulio and the GPS, to keep everybody warm. Everybody sat around it, admiring the crackle of the heat. The orange plasma that was in front of their eyes. It was a small fire, but good enough. The cold of the air surrounding them was replaced with the gentle warmth of the fire and the smell of charred wood. A peaceful scene.

"Hey Blu, how long do we have until we reach Pelotas?" Diante asked him.

"We should arrive there before sundown tomorrow."

"How long until we reach Rio?" he followed up the question.

"Two months."

Diante let out a sigh. He looked up towards the bright stars, and winced when he felt pain in his broken wing. It still hurt him. It hadn't healed yet, and even if it did the bone would be distorted. He needed a cast.

"Any of you know how to make a cast? Or at least a splint for my wing?" Diante asked.

"I do, I had to do this to myself whenever I hurt my wing." Aberdeen walked over to him, and began. She took Diane's wing in her own, it made him wince a little in pain, but she tried her best. She took a few thin pieces of wood and a very long leaf. Aligning the pieces of wood on either side of his wing, she tied them to compress his wing with the leaf.

"There… all done. It wasn't too bad, right?" She asked when she finished.

"Yeah. Thanks."

"You should have asked me earlier, you know. Maybe it wouldn't have been as bad."

"I wasn't thinking about it that much."

"You know, sometimes you just need to open up a little more to other people. If you understand what I am saying." Aberdeen looked into Diante's eyes. But he avoided her gaze.

"It's hard. Especially after-" Diante closed his beak. He said too much. Not this, not here. The wrong place, the wrong time, the wrong atmosphere. Shut up, ignore it.

"After what?"

"Nothing. It doesn't matter anymore." Diante cracked a fake smile.

"Come on, tell me," Aberdeen said in a soft voice, "You can't let your past hold you back." Aberdeen put a wing around Diante. Less as a friend, more as a… companion.

Diante was tempted, she was so friendly. So easy to just talk to. But Diante was a hard rock to crack.

"What is in the past deserves to remain in the past. I can see that now. Looking at the past, I only see a dark tunnel. Looking forward, I can see the light."

"But you can't just forget your problems. When you do that you will start tripping over them. And then you drown in them. You can't let that happen to you." Aberdeen leaned closer to Diante.

It was a good thing Blu, Julius and Clyde were striking up their own conversation, ignoring the existence of Diante and Aberdeen for a while.

"I did something terrible. I betrayed a friend. I betrayed everybody I knew. And they hate me for it." Diante said. For the first time she saw Diante cry.

"What happened?" Aberdeen leaned closer.

"They cried out for help and I left them there. In a fire. Nothing was the same. Jewel hates me, Roberto, Eduardo, Mimi, Everybody. Fire, burning, hatred. There was everything, then there was nothing. And now there's something. Hate, anger, distrust. There was friendship, then the fire, then the hate and scorn."

Aberdeen didn't expect Diante to come out like this. And she then expected him to stop there but he didn't.

"Mistakes, problems lead to mistakes. I made a mistake. I am a problem. A weed that kills the tree. A tick that slows down the old dog. The cure, is vengeance. They want vengeance. The gardener kills the weed after the tree dies. The owner puts a flea collar on the dog. They want to kill me, I'm the weed, they the gardener."

"Diante, I am sure they forgive you."

"Would you forgive me?"

"Of course I would. "

"No you wouldn't."

"And why would you say that?"

"Because I never apologized. I never said sorry, I never tried to make up for it. I only hurt them more and more, and now whenever they see me they think I want to kill them. Don't you understand how it feels, whenever I am around, they walk away? They hiss, they curse? Have you ever been spit at by somebody? Do you know what it feels like? No you don't. You are too nice to not say sorry. You are too friendly to abandon your friends. You love them too much. People don't abandon the ones they love."

"Would you abandon me?" Aberdeen asked.

Was this a trick question? What was she getting at?

"No."

"Do you… do you love me?" Aberdeen lifted her wings off of Diante's back. Diante missed the warmth, he missed the softness of her feathers. And the cold started to encroach upon him again. He wanted to say no, like he did everybody else. Leave them, no feelings, no tears. No heart or soul. But for the first time in his life he finally felt warm. He only felt that way when he was with Aberdeen. The fire was there, but it was a cold heat. A heat that represented nothing. The warmth he felt inside, meant something. Was Blu right? Perhaps. Was he going to admit that. Not now, not later, never in a million years.

He didn't want to remain alone. This was the moment where he could change his life, for the better. He didn't want to be cold. This was the time. He didn't want to feel sad. This was the moment. He didn't want to feel alone. Never again. Never in million years. Never, never, apologies would be made. The past would become present. He would have to confront his problems in the future if he and the rest of the group got out of this alive.

Was that what it felt like whenever Jewel hugged Blu? Was that what it felt like to be loved? Then he would have to pursue that for as long as he could, he would have to find that thing. That thing called love. That dragon that people talk of, but he always that it was fantasy. Something only was produced in the wildest of imaginations. That dragon called love. That unicorn they named love. That sasquatch dubbed love. That fairy of love. The dragon named love, that is it. And he would pursue that dragon, so he could see it. Feel it. Tame and domesticate it. So he could ride on it.

The dragon was presenting itself right in front of his eyes. He needed only to say one word. Right here. Right now. At this pivotal point in the universe. Get to it. Change your life. Feel happiness and joy, end the misery. One word.

Diante looked at Aberdeen in the eyes. She was so beautiful. The way her yellow feathers sparkled in the fire light. Even though they were both dirty. Covered in dirt and mud. It didn't have an effect on the eyes of Diante.

Aberdeen looked him in the eyes, and he could tell, she felt the same way towards him. Both have never truly loved somebody romantically.

How the fire almost seemed to burn brighter then.

"Yes." Diante finally said, after what seemed a very long time. No, an eternity. How long had Aberdeen waited for him to say that one word.

"Do you love me?" Diante asked her, taking her wings into his own.

"Yes, I really do." Aberdeen said.

* * *

"Okay New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays. Who would win?" Clyde asked Blu and Julius.

"I know both the Yankees and the Red Sox would kick Toronto's ass. Sweep the floor with them you know. Between the two of them, I can't say for sure." Blu said.

"The Yankees for sure. They have a history of defeating Boston." Julius said.

"Oh yeah? Why don't you go to Boston and say that? You would get beat up by every man woman and child in the city!"

"At least I know greatness when I see it. If you really think Boston could beat New York in _baseball_. You've got another thing coming!"

"Relax! The both of you. It's just baseball!" Clyde intervened before the two strangles each other.

"True. You ever seen how excited soccer fans get about their sport?" Blu said.

"Don't get me started on them."

"Hey guys. Look over at Diante and Aberdeen. I think they are about to smooch." Julius said in a hushed tone, he nodded his head over towards them.

The trio watched as the pair of lovebirds expressed their feelings for the other.

That dragon made love was real. Anybody could find it, even in the middle of the forest. In front of a campfire. In the cold of night. Maybe they were delusional from not having anything to eat, maybe they were sick with pneumonia from being out in the resin and cold. Maybe they were both dying, and were getting desperate for something to hold on to. So they held onto each other.

Perhaps that explains it. But it didn't. Not everything had a rationale, not everything has an explanation. You can't explain why gravity works, but you feel it. You can see its effect. You can't see _it_ however. You can't see gravity. You can't see the force of two magnets attracting to each other. But you can see its effect.

You can't see love, but you can see its effect. It was right there, in front of them. Maybe it was pure love. Unexplainable. No reason for why they loved each other. You can present evidence for why you love your spouse. Because they are kind, beautiful, sweet, loving, loyal. But is that truly why you love them? No. You live them because they love you. But why do they love you? Nobody has a clue.

That's why the dragon is so fantasized, why it is so mysterious. Maybe love doesn't exist. Maybe the dragon was never a thing. But it does, it is hidden.


	22. Look Alive !

_Jewel and Blu both danced in the field of roses, and fresh flowers. The sun was bright, few puffy white clouds hung in the sky like cottonballs. The sky was blue like an ocean, the grass green like a clover._

 _They enjoyed each other. Their company, their happiness. As if they were one person. The two of them alone in this pleasant meadow. The two of them alone in the garden._

 _And Blu couldn't have been happier, Jewel complemented his looks, Blu did the same. They looked each other in the eyes, not a care in the world. Only feelings for each other._

 _Jewel suddenly pulled Blu close to her. He closed his eyes, waiting for it. A kiss that would have told him that he is safe. But none came._

 _He opened his eyes and saw Jewel there. She smiled and opened her beak._

" _Blu."_

 _His own name was has sweet as honey when it came from her._

" _Blu, Look alive!"_

Blu blinked his eyes closed and was transported to a nightmare. Diante was on top of him, shaking him. Yelling at him.

"Blu! Blu wake up!" Diante yelled at him. But he didn't yell at his full volume. He was hushed for some reason. As Diante shook Blu awake, Blu opened his weary eyes.

"Look alive, Blu! Come on! Get up! On your feet!" Diante grabbed Blu by the wings and pulled him up. Blu still was only half asleep.

"What? What happened?" Blu mustered out of his beak.

"Panther! Blu we have to go! Panther! It's coming, Blu, Goddamit Blu! Get up! Get up, the Panther!"

Blu finally regained his whole consciousness, the camp was suspiciously silent.

"Where is everybody else?" Blu asked.

"Where we should be, right now. In the trees! Come on we have to go-"

A soft grumbling sound echoed from outside the tent they were in. Too late, the panther was already here. They had to stay.

Jewel slipped away from Blu, he was no longer safe in the meadow. He was no longer protected in her wings.

He was no longer in heaven. He had descended to hell. There was no fire, no devil lurking torturing dead souls. There was no lava, and heat, and brimstone.

The air was cold, the dirt outside was turned into mud. Diante had mud splashed all over him, brown dirt stained his green and red feathers.

It was outside. It was there. It was hungry. The devil, the king of hell, was there. Waiting for them. But did the Panther know they were there? Blu would have the rest of his life to find out. Maybe he would never see Jewel again.

The air was still, cold, bitter. It was foul smelling, putrid. But it was the same. It wasn't the air that was foul. It was the beast. It was there, he sensed it.

Another growl from the beast escaped it's throat. Blu and Diante stayed still as a stone. Not that it would matter, they were inside of the tent. But what if it heard Diante? What does death feel like?

No matter, the two neither dared to make a sound. Breathing was limited. They stopped breathing, they held their breath. It might not hear them. But I could smell them.

Instantly Blu rubbed mud and dirt over himself. Covering himself on the sent of the Earth. Diante got the message and did the same.

Blu couldn't see his royal blue feathers anymore. He only saw the dirt. And the leaves. On any regular occasion, he would've never have did this. He was far too squeamish. But death was more powerful than fear.

And then Blu saw _it_. The beast's paw dropped on the floor, directly outside the door. Blu would've been able to fly out. Maybe carry Diante, if he had woken up earlier. But the paw was there. Its black fur was evident along the dirt and mud outside. There was no hope if they tried to escape. They had to wait, and see.

They heard it. Sniffing. It smelled something, whether it was incriminating or not, it knew _something_ or _someone_ was here. It sensed it. They could hear it, searching. But searching for who?

Clyde and the rest of the group all scattered out into the surrounding Jungle. Maybe it was searching for them? It hadn't seen them, or heard them, or smelled them?

Wishful thinking. But it was becoming more and more realistic. The panther moved on, a soft grumble escaped its muzzle as it trudged on slowly. Its breakfast escaping it.

When Diante and Blu confirmed that the beast was gone, they made a mad dash towards freedom. They escaped into the bushes. The mud slowing them down a little. Once inside of a bush, they caught their breath, exchanged a highfive, and began to reflect on what happened.

Blu's heart was beating fast. He was sweating, impossible for a bird. It was slightly raining. The storm hadn't completely passed.

They both looked at each other with wild smiles on their faces. They were excited, happy, the ecstasy of surviving something that should've killed you. It was there. The sense of accomplishment.

"Diante. Blu! Get over here!" Clyde called out from the bushes.

Blu and Diante followed the voices until they saw the rest of the group.

"Blu, Diante! Thank goodness you aren't hurt!" Aberdeen cried out when she saw the two.

"Yeah, we thought you guys were minced meat. How come the big cat didn't smell you?" Clyde asked.

"Because your stink rubbed off on the two, and the cat thought they were rotten!" Julius laughed at Clyde.

"I don't smell that bad… do I?" He turned to Aberdeen.

"You could use a shower. Or two. Or three." Diante said.

"I'm gonna eat you like a mouse Diante."

"Doesn't matter. We are here, we are all alive. That's what counts." Blu said to everybody.

"Agreed. Lets keep it that way. Please!" Aberdeen said.

"Okay, so we start moving again?" Clyde asked.

Everybody agreed to get a move on to the city of Pelotas.


	23. A Time To Kill

" _I don't know if I like that Tulio."_

" _Come on! It can't be that bad!"_

" _But these are millions of people all over the world. Watching me! Of course it is that bad."_

" _Look at it like this. You are a Martian exploration rover. Opportunity, Sojourner, whatnot. You are walking through the untamed headlands of the Martian soil. Everybody is chanting for you. 'Blu!' 'Blu!' they are chanting for Sojourner. They are chanting for opportunity. They are chanting for Blu."_

" _Sojourner and Opportunity never made it home, Tulio."_

" _I apologize. Bad analogy. You are Christopher Columbus."_

" _Columbus killed millions of natives, Tulio."_

" _You are a pirate in the Atlantic…"_

" _Pirates got scurvy and died."_

" _Could you be more pessimistic?"_

" _I would rather be compared to Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin than to Christopher Columbus. I would rather be compared to the Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin. And Soviet ships were deathtraps."_

" _Whatever. But look, millions of people worldwide want to see you get home. It would be heartbreaking to them if you got killed. Try not to get eaten by a Panther next time, okay?"_

" _Can I get eaten by a alligator?"_

" _No."_

" _A bear?"_

" _No."_

" _A fox?"_

" _No."_

" _A falcon?"_

" _No."_

" _A mouse?"_

" _No. Stop being ridiculous."_

" _Technically, I am not. I am a bird. You are a smart Human. I can't help the way I was born."_

" _Guess you don't need my help to get back home then. Goodbye Blu."_

" _You wouldn't ."_

" _Tulio?"_

" _Tulio stop fooling around!"_

" _Tulio!"_

" _Tulio you can stop now!"_

" _TULIO I'M NOT PLAYING THESE GAMES!"_

" _TuLIo I'm NoT PlAYiNg ThEsE GaMeS! I bet that is how you sound right now, Blu."_

" _Tulio I hate you sometimes."_

" _I try my best."_

" _I thought you were a ornithologist. Not a jerk."_

" _Keep calling me names and I will walk away from the computer for good."_

" _Sorry. Jeez."_

* * *

Again, it was late in the day. The stars twinkled over the luminescent city of Toronto. The skyscrapers seemingly holding them up.

Tulio was about to sneak home before Evan sent him anything else to do. After confirming where Blu's location was, about a hour to the south of Pelotas, and going around the main city, he tried to go home. A big mistake.

Evan was there, and he didn't look too happy to see him.

When Tulio tried to walk past, Evan grabbed him by the shoulder and halted him.

"Dr. Monteiro, I was looking for you." Evan had a certain tone in his voice. And it wasn't good.

"Ah, yes. Well I am afraid I have to talk to you tomorrow, maybe in the morning."

"Well now don't be such a party crusher. I wanted to ask you a question."

"Um… okay. What happened?"

"It seems as if Blu has recently had a change of plans in terms of his direction towards Rio. He went a few kilometers off course to Pelotas, and you are supposed to be in charge of communicating with him. How come?"

"A few kilometers isn't that far off. I am sure he will be fine."

Evan chuckled at that.

"A few kilometers, right. Let me ask you something, didn't I ask you specifically for you to direct Blu to that city?"

"Well… I guess it was implied."

"So how come, I checked the chat history, and turns out you told Blu to do the exact opposite?"

"You are crazy!"

"Am I? Or is it you, who is crazy?"

"I would never tell Blu to do anything that would harm him. So if you don't mind, _Evan_ , I would like to get home!"

Tulio brushed past Evan.

Evan watched Tulio leave the building. He walked around until he found another person. He leaned over to him and talked to him.

"You have friends in the police department, right?" Evan asked.

The bald man nodded his head.

"Make sure Tulio gets home safe for me will you? If you know what I mean."

"Yes sir."

Again Tulio was on the road, he wanted to get home as fast as possible. He didn't know if he could return to the building. But how would he be able to keep in contact with Blu? It would be Evan commanding Blu, leading him right into a trap.

It was worrying, Linda would know what to do. Tulio began to get lost in his own thoughts. So lost, that he didn't notice the red and blue lights from behind his car until it sounded its alarm.

The sound was loud, a warping sound that vibrated through your head. Not pleasant in the least. Unless of course, you like that sorta thing.

Tulio pulled over to the side of the street. The police car followed, he was indeed being pulled over.

His hands were sweating, maybe he was going to fast while he was thinking. That's probably it, he just wanted to get his ticket and worry about it later on. The winter cold was creeping into the sedan, and his coat was doing its best to keep out the cold, especially now that he has his window down.

The officer emerged from the car, a brown coat with badges covering it, black boots, and a police hat that read "City of Toronto Police Department".

He approached Tulio's window.

"You know how fast you were going?" The officer asked.

"Sorry, sir, wasn't paying attention to the speedometer."

"Had anything to drink?"

 _Great, now he is convinced I'm drunk. Could this day get any worst?_ Yes it could.

"No, sir."

"Step outside of the car, for me."

"Um… I don't think I have to…"

"Step outside of the car."

The officer changed his tone into more of a threat, aggressive. Tulio wasn't sure the officer had the right to force him out of his car. But he didn't have anything to hide, might as well just do what he says.

Tulio unlocked the door, and exited the car into the bitter cold of the Toronto street.

That's when somebody grabbed him from behind, Tulio struggled with the attacker, expecting the policeman to do something. But only a laugh ensued from the officer.

A blow to the nose came from nowhere, and the police officer drew his baton and began beating _Tulio_.

Tulio started to wail, and scream in pain as he was being ruthlessly beaten by the two. More and more blows came to the head, the body, face, knees, hands. Tulio screamed in pain, his cry piercing the silent air.

A few of the building around flicked on their lights, people emerging from their slumber to investigate. The two perpetrators realized this, and began to leave. Leaving Tulio on the dirty, slushy, cold pavement of the street.

The police car pulled away. The slush on the floor became a pink color, soaked with Tulio's blood, he was crying out. A man and a woman emerged from their home, and rushed over to Tulio. Panic on their faces.

"Help me. Help me, please!" Tulio cried out to the two of them. The man and woman rushed over to Tulio, the woman pulled out a first aid kit, the man his phone.

Both of them were talking to him, but fanatically. They were yelling at him.

"Are you okay? Don't worry help is coming!" The man said.

"Oh my goodness! Who did this?" The woman cried out.

Tulio passed out in the cold, he only woke up when a paramedic shook him awake.

"Sir! Are you okay? I think he passed out! Johnson, bring out the stretcher." The first paramedic, a skinny man called out.

"I think he is coming to!" The second paramedic called out, next to the first.

The final paramedic emerged with a stretcher, the first two carried Tulio and put him on. The couple who helped Tulio were being interviewed by the police. Two different police officers, not the one who assaulted him earlier. There were police all over, any one of them could have been the very same officer.

The medics loaded him into the back of the ambulance. One joined him inside while the other two went into the drivers compartment.

After all the doors were closed, the ambulance lurched to a start.

The medic placed a rag soaked with warm water on Tulio's face.

"He is gaining consciousness, Take us to Toronto General Hospital! He is hurt bad, sir, are you okay?" The medic asked him.

"Pain." Tulio was only able to mutter out that word, he felt it all over. His thick coat did nothing to help him from the baton of the officer. He felt major pain in his skull and ribs, his ankles and hands were in huge amounts of pain too. He could barely concentrate on anything, he barely knew where he was.

The light was blurry, his eyes struggled to correct themselves. The medic placed a heart monitor on hi fingers, the beeping sound started up, as his heart belated, so did the machine.

The second Paramedic emerged from the drivers compartment, he grabbed rubbing alcohol and applied it to Tulio's visible wounds on his face and hands. Then, once his face was cleaned, he attached a breathing mask. Pure oxygen flowed into his lungs, vapor escaping the green mask as he berthed out.

His lungs were in pain, his eyes were dizzy, his brain was tired, his heart was pounding. As if he fought a grizzly bear and lost. As if he witnessed the most tragic thing to man.

The ambulance took a right turn, and the doors opened. The paramedics welled the stretcher back out into the cold, and they entered into the hospital. Tulio was assaulted by bright lights, doctors all over looked at him worried and joined the paramedics.

They lowered the stretcher and moved Tulio onto his hospital bed. Tulio knew he was safe here, he breathed a little easier.

The medics talked to doctors about him, he overheard their conversation.

"…And he was just bleeding from his nose and mouth, several bruises. It looks like he was out there for fifteen minutes."

"Alright, I will have a look at him. Thank you."

A gray haired man entered. He wore a smile and looked a Tulio.

"How are you feeling Dr. Monteiro?" The doctor asked him.

Tulio held up his thumb, talking hurt too much.

"Ah, it's that painful? Don't worry, we get people like you in here all the time, you are in good hands."

The rest of the day went like this, the doctors examined Tulio's body, gave him painkillers, stopped the bleeding, the whole nine yards. Tulio barely had to do anything. He felt like a passenger on this. Even though they were doing it all to him. Up to the encounter with the policeman he felt like he was in control.

Now he wasn't in control even of his own body, doctors having to wheel him around all over for x-rays and the like.

Tulio was informed he might have to stay for a week.

He would never be able to keep in contact with Blu now. Evan would get to him.

 _Wait… Evan probably did this whole thing in the first place! That treacherous bastard! I will kill him for this!_

But Tulio wasn't able to do anything. He was paralyzed in a hospital. He could move his limbs, but only with great pain. He wasn't going to crawl back to the office and murder Evan. Besides, when the police asked what happened he will explain everything. Surely somebody in that neighborhood took a picture of the encounter.

Little did he know, he was currently in the midst of one of the largest corruption scandals in Canadian history, and one of the largest in the world. He was going to be the domino of it all, that would set all of them rolling.


	24. Twelve Angry Birds !

She held up the blue feather. Everybody around her looked at it, astounded.

"I found it in the Highlands, just off the shore of the river. Right before you reach our territory."

"So he is alive. I knew it!" Jackson said somewhere in the council of macaws gathered around her.

"Now, calm down Jackson. That doesn't go to say Blu is currently alive. That just means he didn't drown in the river." Eduardo said to him.

"How far does the trail go?" Mimi asked Jewel.

"All the way until you are about to enter the Blue macaw territory. But it looks like he got captured before he was able to enter the sanctuary. He was only a few minutes away walking distance."

"That's sad. He almost made it, he was almost here. Where do you think the captors went?" Eduardo asked.

"I don't know. I saw the tire trails of some human vehicle pull off onto their highway…"

"I knew it! I knew it! I knew it! He was on that truck!"

"Jackson, calm down!" Eduardo scolded him.

"Yes sir!"

"Maybe they didn't go too far. They probably dropped him off somewhere around the sanctuary." Mimi said to Jewel.

"Fat chance," A blue macaw sentry said from behind, "That vehicle that both Jewel and Jackson are referring to was heading towards Buenos Aires. That isn't anywhere around here."

"Maybe it would be worth it if we open the search for Blu again?" Mimi chimed in.

"I don't think we would be able to find anything. We would have to go for miles if we wanted to find him. And we just simply do not have that kind of power. Nobody does." Eduardo shook his head.

"We could ask the Scarlet macaws. Or what about the falcons that live in the highlands? Or…"

"Do you really think they would risk sending a search party out for hundreds of miles to find somebody they do not even know?" The sentry interrupted Mimi.

"Good point."

"I know somebody who _does_ have that kind of power." Jewel said.

Everybody looked at her with interest.

"Who?" Eduardo asked.

"Humans."

"What?!" Everybody cried out.

"Listen, sweetheart, I know that you really miss Blu and all, but Humans are the ones who probably abducted Blu in the first place. Do you really think they would be willing to help us?" Eduardo asked her, with a raised eyebrow.

"Look, dad, I know you do not trust Humans. But not all Humans are bad. Blu explained this to me, Humans live in different tribes and factions that they call 'countries' and Blu is from one of those factions. Some of these _countries_ do not care about us, but others do. Like the Americans."

"What is an American?"

"Humans that come from the United States… look the point is, not all humans are bad! And some might really want to help us."

"This is madness." The Sentry stated.

"Don't you have a job to do?" Mimi asked him.

"Minding my own business Ma'am!"

Everybody had to think for a while.

Jackson raised his voice.

"I am all for it. You see, I have seen Humans and their machines before. And they are capable of some serious stuff. Things I can't even imagine! I am sure they will be able to bring Blu back."

"That's 2 votes for and 3 votes against." The Sentry said.

"Three?" Jewel asked.

"Myself included. Look, I understand what everybody is saying, but I don't think it could simply be done. Humans may not be all bad, but how are we supposed to communicate with them?" The Sentry said.

"Is he supposed to have an opinion?" Jackson leaned over to Eduardo and whispered in his ear.

"I CAN HEAR YOU! And yes I can. I help protect this village, surely my opinion matters."

"The Sentry has a good point. How are we going to communicate with the Humans? They won't understand what we are saying!" Mimi asked Jewel.

"Blu tried to teach me how to read and write when he was here, but I never understood it. But my daughter, Bia understands it better than anyone. She knows how to get in contact with them."

"That's it for me. I vote in favor." Mimi said.

"Vote is 3-2 in favor of asking them for help." The Sentry said.

"But how can we be sure they won't stab us in the back? The Humans that we defeated earlier were inexperienced loggers, don't you realize that they have professional hunters? We can't ensure their trust and loyalty." Eduardo argued.

"Humans don't need to be loyal to us, we need to be loyal to them!" Jewel said.

"Oh what? You are going to start performing tricks for them?" Eduardo made a sarcastic remark.

"If I have to. Look, they don't kill all animals. Don't you see that the animals who eat humans or are hostile to them are the ones who are being wiped out? Dogs, cats, Squirrels, Pigeons, all the animals that can live with Humans are thriving. Maybe it is time we do the same."

"Are you suggesting we move into Human territory?" The sentry asked..

"You have to be out of your mind! For years we have remained secluded from Humans. We can't just integrate into their society just like that. And doing so has its disadvantages too you know. I spoke to a few Pigeons myself and they told me that they have to be wary of being stepped on, or hit by a car!" Eduardo said.

"But the advantages outweigh the setbacks. We would be able to gain more food. Humans tend to feed pigeons and other creatures on the streets.. We wouldn't have to worry about deforestation." Jackson pointed out.

"It is a good idea. Maybe it is time to take a gamble?" Mimi added.

"I have my doubts, but I think it would be better in the long run." The Sentry added.

Eduardo had to think clearly. He needed tunnel vision. Surely a makeshift gathering of five people shouldn't decide the fate of the whole village. There needed to be a vote of at least 10 other macaws. Most of the time, Eduardo made all the decisions for the tribe by himself, the sole dictator.

He liked how everybody reasoned with each other. How only one person could influence a whole group and sway opinions.

Was this what Blu was talking about that one time? What was the word called?

Democrazy?

Demawcrasi?

Democracy? Yeah that was it Democracy.

He remembered one time he engaged in a discussion with Blu, and in it, Blu mentioned something about Democracy. Something Eduardo never heard of. But it sounded promising. He wasn't the type of bird who was power hungry. Maybe he should leave it to somebody else to help him.

"I will create a Jury of twelve birds in our village. The Jurors will decide on what is best." Eduardo said.

"Who is gonna be on the Jury?" Mimi asked.

"It will be random. I will gather everyone's name who lives in the tribe, and scramble them in a box. Tomorrow I will call out the name of the Twelve in the Pit of Doom. Fair?"

Everybody looked around. A jury of Twelve people would be able to make the wisest decision. It was rather, _unusual_ to put it. None of the other previous tribe leaders ever made such a decision like this before, most of the leaders preferred to keep power in their own talons. Eduardo was sure to go down in history as the greatest, and everybody knew right in that moment, that the creation of the Tribes first Jury, was a historic moment.

Everybody was dismissed from the gathering hall. They each went back to their own homes and awaited the event tomorrow. Jackson and the Sentry spread the word throughout the village, everybody was required to be there.

Even when Blu wasn't here he still was making a huge impact on the village. Is it because of him? Is it something of his nature? Blu left a wake of chaos wherever he went, and even when he was gone it was still there. He had the most power, currently, than anybody else in this village. And for all anybody know, he could be dead!

Jewel thought about it when she tucked her little ones in bed. Now they were the ones she cherished the most. She had taken to putting her comfort in them. And they were always there for her.

"Goodnight mom!" The trio sung together. Jewel's smile stretched farther than the sun. She was content and happy here. But anxious, who was going to be the Jury of twelve tomorrow? They would decide the fate of the tribe, the destiny of that tribe. It could get a lot better, or it could get a lot worst. The twelve people elected tomorrow would decide on that, or nothing would change at all. She prayed that she was among the jury.

Everybody gathered around, anxious. Nervous squawking came from the hundreds of macaws gathered in the Pit of doom. Felipe let them have it all to themselves. The sun was high, and temperature higher. People were hot, tired, scared. But they didn't complain, how could they? What was happening right now is a historical moment, one for the records. One never before seen.

Eduardo took his place at the center of it all. Four sentries guarded him and were given specific roles, and they all stood in a square around him. Eduardo at the center, of everything. The center of the square, the center of the audience, to him, the center of the universe.

All eyes were on him as he dove his talons into the box of leaves. Each leaf had a name etched on it (not in English of course because logic, but in the macaws language which was a series of scratch marks in the dirt)

He pulled out name by name, and whispered to his guards to bring them to the center of the stage. Cheering, tears, and applause followed, everytime somebody stood up and took their position at the center. Usually followed by a curtsy or a bow.

The Twelve Jurors stood on the stage, each of them extremely nervous. Some where about to pass out from the shock of it all.

However, they knew they had a duty. And they would carry it out until the end. They took pride in being among the Jurors of this historic moment.

After the round of applause and cheering, name chanting, and tears ended, Eduardo took off into the air. He was followed by the other twelve macaws and the four sentries. They landed in front of a large tree hollow. Enough to comfortably fit all of them inside.

"Alright. You Twelve will stay here until an unanimous decision is made. Your issue: Should we move the Spix Macaw tribe into Human territory?

Good luck" Eduardo left the Jurors with only that. He flew away, and all the Jurors looked at each other.

This wasn't going to be easy, they could tell straight off the bat.


	25. Lack of a better name for this chapter

**In case you guys haven't noticed, the name for this chapter is the same name as one of the chapters from Rio 3, the original one. So you can think of this chapter truly as a tribute to that previous story.**

 **I am going to try my best not to create a huge essay for you all to read, but I can't help myself.**

 **As you can see (for those of you who read the original) I kept my promise. Didn't I? I didn't exactly promise anything, but I did say the plot was going to be pretty different. Bordering on a different story.**

 **Here is my excuse for the originals plot. I watched one too many episodes of Invader Zim, and when that stuff gets inside of your head, _it stays._**

 **All in all, don't do drugs kids.**

 **So the pigeons invading the tribe and all the rest of that stuff, yeah, goodbye. Good riddance, felt good to get that off my chest.**

 **Some other news is that my month long marathon of Fortnite has ended. And with a lot of time spent in the Emergency Room, a very patient surgeon, and few prosthetic legs, I am back and better than ever!**

 **Hopefully.**

 **That being** said, **I will list out all the things that are different in this story. In case you are having trouble.**

 **-Jewel actually does something to contribute. Last story, I just had her sit around and wait all day until Blu came back. Not very interesting as a story, and certainly doesn't show Jewel's true character. Now she will actively try and fight, to get Blu back home.**

 **-Humans! Evan and the other scientist were a major plot addition to this story. Instead of the pigeons as the "bad guys" they have been replaced with Evan and his team.**

 **-No pigeons. Quite obviously. They were a dumb addition to the story. Didn't really contribute, nor made any real plot depth.**

 **-Less random stupidity. Some people like it, but I was actually trying to make a serious story back then. It did not come out the same way. OOof.**

- **RIP Connor. Yeah Connor got wiped off the slate _fast_ _._**

 ** _-_ Diante and Aberdeen are actually in a relationship. Last story, they kind of just were friends. The end of the story I just mentioned they were expecting a child and I know all of oh were confused by that. How did they become friends, not really do anything romantic together, and next thing you lone Aberdeen is pregnant? WTF ?!**

 **-Less jumbled text. Important for the eyes.**

 **-A better writing style. I like my Fahrenheit 451° writing style, and I am gonna keep it.**

 **-And it is a very different story. All together.**

 **Cool right? Can I hang out with the cool writers on this archive now? No? Okay then, sorry for being a pest. Goodbye hopes and dreams.**

 **Now that my hopes and dreams are dead, lets move on with the story .**

The caravan stopped outside the city of Pelotas. Blu made sure of that. But even still, he was worried. Trying to plot the around-the-way course would take several more hours to traverse. And just to navigate it would require major adjustment.

The group pretty much just elected Blu as the leader. He understood Human language, so he could read the GPS. He was pretty much the smartest out of all of them and was well liked. Well liked enough anyway.

Diante still held his grudges, but he didn't make a big deal out of it. After that scene he had with Aberdeen, he decided he should try and make things right for once in his life.

"The new course is going to take at least 4 extra hours to complete. That is about 5 hours for a Human, 7 or 8 hours for us. We aren't going to be able to sleep in the street lights, so we are going to have another camp in the great outdoors." Blu said.

"Why can't we just go through the city? I can't see what the big deal is!" Clyde was tired of being the pack mule. And what made it worst is that their walking time was about to be extended.

Blu asked everybody to give Clyde a break and not use him as a bus, and instead he loaded all of their supplies onto his back with a makeshift saddle. Something Clyde wasn't too ecs.

"Tulio sent me a special message telling me to do this. I am not exactly sure why somebody would be out to capture us, but I would trust him rather than take the chance."

"But my paws are killing me! Look I have an idea, why don't we rest for the rest of the day and finish the journey tomorrow?"

"Bad idea, we should cover as much ground as possible so we don't have as much. Besides we are on the clock, who knows when we will get more food and water?" Diante pitched in.

"Besides, we are all tired and hungry. I know you are doing a lot and you don't like it but won't you just be our friend and help us?" Aberdeen asked Clyde.

"Sometimes I love you guys. Sometimes I really hate you. Times like right now." Clyde sighed and kept on.

"You _don't_ hate me all the time?" Diante asked, poking fun at Clyde.

"Oh no I don't. I hate you slightly and then other times I hate you really. And there are times when I just want to outright murder you." Clyde laughed.

"Aw. You are making me blush."

"Diante look me in the eyes!" Clyde pulled Diante over. Diante looked straight into them. He didn't notice how one of Clyde's eyes were red and the other blue. Strange.

Clyde blink and turned Diante back around.

"Okay don't look me in the eyes. I just saw the end of the world in there." The whole group laughed at Clyde and Diante's rivalry.

The journey was agonizing, the rain had long stopped pouring down on them, but nonetheless the climb through the dirt and the untamed terrain was unlike anything they have encountered.

How they struggled through it all! But each and every one of them had the goal in their eyes. To reach the golden city! The get to their destination. They were focused on their goal, and once they set a task for themselves, they were determined to reach it. Ignorant of all the signs telling them they couldn't do it.

Think about what they accomplished already. They already escaped from the shelter in Buenos Aires, made it across the river to Montevideo, carried on to Rivera, crossed the Uruguayan border into Brazil, and they reached Pelotas.

By now, reaching destinations and challenges became a breeze for them. It seemed as of the cities only got closer together.

When they first started their expedition, the city of Montevideo, in itself, seemed far away. Their biggest feat was conquering the trail to Rivera. But by now, they felt like they could reach Rio tomorrow! Mexico City next week! New York before the end of two weeks! They felt they could run the entire world!

Or maybe they were just assuring themselves, falsely inflating their hopes so they have the willpower to carry on. Maybe that was it.

Nonetheless, they were getting there. They were making progress. Real progress.

The trip in itself was harsh. Crossing various streams and small rivers that crisscrossed the region was difficult, but they found their way.

Eventually, they reached the north point of the city of Rivera. Their course was complete. To celebrate, they ate twice their usual ration amount (about half a can of food they found inside of Rivera) and made a camp outside of the city.

Again, the moon was high and the stars were bright. They made sure not to repeat their mistake they made last time, and camped in the trees. Clyde stayed inside of a hollow while the rest of the birds camped on the tree branches and other smaller hollows. They should be safe here.

Hopefully.

Blu knew that his survival meant a lot to a lot of people. But he had no idea of the effects his situation had on the world. It was impossible for him to know. So many things were being set in motion, while he was gone, because of him. And he didn't even have to lift a feather.

But he knew what he was here for, and he knew where he wanted to go. He needed to get back home, it had been so long. He forgotten what it felt like to be kissed or hugged by Jewel. Or to have his children jump on him with love whenever he was there. He forgotten all of that.

He knew Jewel was there. He knew she was waiting for him. But to him, Jewel started to feel more and more like a stranger. Somebody he fantasized of in his wild imagination. Was it possible the love between Jewel and himself never existed? That he and Jewel never fell in love and had kids? That his whole life up to his moment was fake? That he was stuck in a dream state, and he woke up into this? Was this real life?

It was only a month since he was gone, a month since he last saw Jewel, down by the river. It felt like it had been years. Had it only been one month? Impossible.

Jewel felt like somebody he loved, yet never knew. That person on TV you admire most but you could never meet. He felt as if Jewel was never his wife, as if all the things that happened between the two happened in some weird love movie.

He remembered jumping out of the plane for Jewel, not knowing how to fly. He would always use that to assure himself that he was a brave and courageous bird. But now it felt like somebody else did it. That he only watched from a 5th wall as another bird sacrificed his own life for Jewel.

No, he knew Jewel was real. He knew that he loved her, he knew she loved him. When he jumped out of a airplane to rescue her, it was him. He loved her and she loved him.

And he fought as hard as he could to get back to her, no matter what it takes. No matter how long. For all he knew, it could take years before he got back home to Jewel, but he would still keep on fighting. No matter what.

And most importantly of all, he wasn't about to let Diante and Aberdeen love each other while he sat there alone. He wasn't going to let Diante win the game of love.

Then again, the only reason why Blu was lonely now was because he accidentally picked up a chance card in the game of love. Guess that's just the way that life goes.

Imagine that? Blu seperated, hundreds of miles from his wife and children, and he was stuck here watching Diante (Diante of all people) fall in love with Aberdeen.

Blu wasn't jealous of Diante or anything. In his eyes, compared to Jewel, Aberdeen was hideous.

Well she wasn't hideous. Blu had to admit Aberdeen was pretty. But Jewel on the other hand…

To him, there wasn't much to compare.

Either way, he was going to try all he could to get back home. Even if it breaks him. It doesn't matter, he needed to get home.


	26. Too Long

**Hey guys! Sorry for taking about a month to publish a new chapter. I had a packed schedule. Believe me. Highschool is fun, but hot damn is it hard. Anyway, I know this is what you've all been waiting for. So without further ado here is my next chapter. Hope you enjoy.**

"So what did you see?"

"I don't know too well. But me and my wife were getting ready for bed. Um… I saw the lights of a police car from out of my window, and the man was pulled over. I was about ready to go into bed when I just started to hear screaming. My wife looked outside the window and saw the man was being beaten by the officer and another person who didn't look like a cop, and then they hopped into the police car and drove off. They just left the guy in the streets."

"You happen to get a look at the face of the assailant?"

"No sir."

The first police officer turned to his partner.

"I think we have a interesting lead here."

The second officer finished writing everything on a notepad.

"We gotta bring this back to the station. There is something more here than somebody being beaten by a rouge officer." The second officer said.

The first agreed and they both made a beeline towards the police precinct where they turned in their findings.

Meanwhile, Tulio was still in the hospital. Much better than he was before. His bruises had mostly healed and he wasn't in as much pain. By his side was Linda and Fernando. A few police officers stood nearby to ask questions about what had happened.

When Linda received the news, she was delirious crying all over and in a state of confusion. But it was a while, and everybody had calmed down. Still she made sure that the nurses and doctors attended to his every whim, even if it caused a few murmurs of resistance among them.

Suddenly, four officer appeared at the front of the hospital. They called out Tulio's name, until the nurses and doctors guided them to his hospital bed.

None of the officers looked familiar to Tulio, save a few of them he saw at the scene of the crime, ask he relaxed a little bit.

"Dr. Monteiro, we wanted to speak to you." The head officer spoke to him in a firm voice. Linda and Fernando looked rather uncomfortable, deciding to leave for a while until whatever was happening finished.

"Oh, yes. And what might this be about?"

"We have some questions about what happened last night. We have spoken to a few witnesses, and their story pretty much is all the same. Now we need to hear it from you."

"Mr. Monteiro," another officer spoke up "you are a foreign national right? Do I have to read your list of rights before we proceed?"

Tulio shook his head.

"No need. I understand them," Tulio winced as he recalled the memories of the night before, "Well… it all happened kind of fast. I was driving and then I got pulled over. I thought I was going too fast, the officer asked me a few normal questions, then he asked me to step outside the car. And when that happened, I was beaten."

"You happened to remember his face? The ID number on his badge?"

"I know his face clearly, but the rest of the stuff I can't remember."

"Interesting." A officer behind the crowd whispered, as he wrote on a notepad.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" a lower ranking cop asked him.

"Well, I'm thinking that this case goes far beyond just one incident of police violence. I think that this is huge. Something much bigger, and far more complex."

"Agreed. Let's get this back to Headquarters. They'll know what to make of this."

When the officers left, Linda and Fernando came back in.

"Yeah, I understand. Just make sure everything works, and nothing catches on fire. Thank you." Linda hung up the phone relieved.

"Who was that?" Tulio asked.

"Mauri, he got back to the sanctuary in Rio, just in case Blu shows up."

"Does he have-"

"Yes, he has the messaging system and GPS with him. He is going to be taking over messages from here on out."

Tulio heaved a sigh of relief. Glad he got that off his chest.

"Who… who did this to you?" Fernando asked him.

Tulio straightened his face.

"I know it was him. It was Evan. I just know it!"

"Figured." Linda said, "But what are we going to do about it?"

"We don't have to do anything. The police already know something is wrong. They will find out who is really behind all of this." Tulio grew a content smile on his face.

"Fat chance, if they managed to win over that one cop, who knows how many other puppets they have inside. For all we know those officers who just came here could be on Evans payroll." Fernando pointed out.

"He is right you know." Linda said.

"Well, I don't know. There isn't anything we can do now. We just have to get out of Toronto for now."

"I am sorry Tulio, but we can't just up and leave. We don't have the money."

"Rent a hotel in New York, or even closer, Buffalo. We have to get out of Dodge now!"

"Hey, my aunt lives in New York! Remember, I took the family to stay over that one time? She would be glad to see us again."

"Well then that's is what we will do for now."


	27. I Need A New Beginning

**Hello everybody on the Internet. Welcome back to my story. I wanted to say one thing, something that I have wanted to say for a long, long time.**

 **I got a victory royale in Fortnite.**

 **Nah, I actually didn't. Just kidding, ha! I would never actually get a victory royale.**

 **My actual news is that we have hit 2k views on this story. This is the single fastest growing story I have ever made and I just wanted to say thank you.**

 **This is about the halfway point of our story, and slowly yet surely you will see the rest of the story unfold, with a big event at the end of the story. So stay tuned.**

 **On an related note, I wanted to also say that not only is this the 2nd most viewed story I have ever written but this story also has the second most amount of favorites and the most amount of people following it.**

 **You guys are truly amazing, like for real.**

* * *

It was about time Jewel went to officially get help. She was bound to depart to Rio, anything and everything would be essential. As long as she could find Blu.

She knew he wasn't dead, she could feel it, but it doesn't mean anything if she couldn't find him. So, who better to ask for help than Linda and Tulio? They are scientists after all, they should be able to find Blu.

She said her goodbyes to everybody in the tribe. She was only going to be gone for a few weeks, but that wasn't enough that her father didn't worry over her all the time. Needless to say, some people weren't too impressed that she was going to visit the humans.

"I can't be the only one who doesn't think this a that hot of an idea", Said Roberto.

"Come on, why do you worry so much? I go on vacations like this all the time with Blu, and I came back fine." Jewel retorted.

"But you are all alone, what if you get lost? What if you can't find your way back? What if-"

"I have as good a sense of navigation as anybody else. I can do this. Trust me."

Roberto didn't say anything else.

"Good, now, I am leaving the kids to stay here with Eduardo. It shouldn't be too hard to lose them again, right?" Jewel said.

Roberto recalled the memory, embarrassed about what had happened in the past. But what was in the past is in the past, there is no going back to fix it. Only the here and the now, time stops for no one, not even Roberto.

"Don't answer that."

"I just hope you have a safe journey, that's all."

"Thank you."

Roberto had a burning question he needed to ask Jewel. Ever since he met Blu he wondered and thought about this, but he couldn't find an answer. Now is the time, who knows when Jewel might come back. She might come back never again.

"Jewel…"

Jewel turned around and looked at him, a questioned look on her face.

"I wanted to ask… why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you… why do you love Blu?"

Jewel was taken aback by this question a little. But based off the tone of Roberto's question, she could tell that he wasn't trying to woo her or anything like that. Rather it was a serious question.

Roberto did indeed just want to know. He wasn't looking for anything else. So Jewel told him.

"I… I guess it's because of everything about him. He is kind, gentle, great with the kids…"

"Jewel stop playing with me. You and I both know that you love him more than because of that. What is the real reason?" Roberto was serious.

Jewel took a while before she said why.

"It is because I know him. I feel like I can trust with anything. That he would carry me through a lake of fire and would never let go…" Roberto expected Jewel to stop there but she didn't.

"At first I didn't like him. I thought he was weird, kind of. But then he showed me how wrong I was. He jumped out of a plane when he knew he couldn't fly, just to at least go down with me. And he gained my love and respect. He has saved me so many times before and after that."

"So you love him because you _owe_ him?"

"You don't understand."

"Your right, I don't. And I have to tell you something. Have always loved you too Jewel. But if this love between you and Blu is real, I am not going to destroy something like that. I wish for you to bring Blu back home safe. Because he is a good friend of mine."

Jewel was touched, and she understood what Roberto was saying.

"Thank you Roberto."

"I hope you have a good flight."


	28. I fell in love in a dream

**Oh my gosh! Two chapters in one day! What?!**

 **You must be crazy.**

 **Yes, yes I am crazy.**

 **Agent Megan:**

 **PUBG strikes again, oof.**

 **Enjoy this chapter everybody.**

* * *

"Listen up you sorry, lot. We have work to do okay? Our rations are running out and if we don't find water we are going to die of thirst. Any bright ideas, eh?" Clyde looked around.

Julius put his wing up.

"No Julius, I have already told you. We are not going to do a rain dance for the rain gods." Clyde said to him.

Julius put his wing down.

"I have a idea. Me and Aberdeen go and scout for food from the air, the two of you set up camp here and light a campfire." Blu said.

"I think that is a good plan. Any objections?"

Julius raised his wing.

"Put your wing down."

Julius again, put his wing down.

"Bobs your uncle, we do that then."

Blu and Aberdeen departed to find food in the jungle, while Clyde, Diante and Julius stayed behind.

"So, not that those two are gone, why don't we set up camp?" Diante asked standing upright.

"Since when did you become Mr. Do it all?" Julius asked.

"Since when did you start to care about what I did?"

"The lad is right, we ought to get this camp set up I guess." Clyde said.

"I am not your 'lad', okay?" Diante retorted.

"Oh yeah? Remember who is the one who has teeth sharper than your brain."

Diante put a puzzled expression on his face, "My brain isn't supposed to be sharp… wait… Are you calling me stupid?"

"Well I ain't calling you for dinner."

"Shut up, and lets get this started before they come back."

And the trio started, just in time too.

Blu and Aberdeen didn't bring much back but it was enough to last them for a few days. After dividing it all up and stowing it away, they feasted.

A few hours after, Diante and Aberdeen sat together looking at the moonlight.

"It's so beautiful, like a diamond in the sky." Aberdeen sounded like her breath was taken away.

"Yeah… Imagine that. And Julius tried to convince me that it was a giant block of cheese." Diante replied with a chuckle.

Aberdeen giggled a little too.

"Sounds like something Julius would say."

"I guess he might be right." Diante admitted.

"Oh really? You think the moon is a block of cheese?"

"As far as I know, the Moon could be anything. How can I say he is wrong if I don't know myself?"

"Good point."

Diante had something else he wanted to say to her, but he was a but nervous. How would she react? Would she feel the same way? Is this serious? Is their confessed love for each other serious? Or is it nothing more than something that was right to say at the moment?

Diante knew that he loved Aberdeen. He knew that he wanted to be with her for ever. Wouldn't it be great to have somebody there by your side all the time, to catch you when you are about to fall, and to help you up when you trip?

But does she want the same thing? He knew Aberdeen liked him, but he didn't know if she actually wanted to follow through with it.

He was nervous, extremely nervous actually. He never knew that the future of his life could ever depend so crucially on this one very moment. Life was very indecisive, regrettably many actions that could alter somebody's life for better or worst weigh on one single action.

So was he going to ask?

"Aberdeen?" Diante said out loud. Wait, he didn't say that. He wasn't speaking.

"Hm?"

"I wanted to say…" Diante wasn't speaking. Something else was. He wasn't in control. He wanted to stop himself but the words kept falling out. It is as if somebody else was talking to Aberdeen, yet any consequence of these words would affect him. How he wanted nothing more than to just shut up!

"Actually, I wanted to ask you..." Aberdeen moved a little closer to Diante, and he could feel her warmth. She was so cute in the moonlight.

"Yes?"

"I wanted to ask… if you… if you really love me?"

"Of course I do!"

Diante stood up and took her wings into his own.

"Yeah but are you serious about it? Am I the person that you want to spend the rest of your life with? To have a family? To grow old and die with? Are you the person who wants to dance with me in heaven and hell. During the good and the bad. The bad and the worst?"

"I was thinking of asking you the same question. I thought I actually forced you into saying whether or not you loved me. But I honestly do love you. I want to be your one and only. We fit perfectly together. Like Moon and Sun. Black and White." Aberdeen stood up and looked Diante straight in the eye.

"We are the only ones that fit each other. Like a puzzle piece." She said again.

They then both hugged each other, admiring one another. Even though they were both filthy, they didn't care. Who cares?

They both smelled like the back end of a pig, but again, who cared? They didn't.

And they both sensed in each other, they knew each others motion. And they leaned in, eyes close, for a kiss.

They were both in dreamworld. A land of pure ecstasy and happiness. They both fell in love with a fantasy. They both fell in love in a dream.


	29. Just a rant I guess

**Hey guys! I am going to post this chapter as an alert for the next couple of chapters and for some news.**

 **First order of business, I am changing my username (The horror) you probably don't care but just in case, my new username is going to be Digital Riot. Why Digital Riot?**

 **Reasons. I have my reasons.**

 **Next, we are reaching the halfway point of the story and there is going to be a lot of character development here, especially around Diante. He is of course one of the main characters and his story will begin to unravel and unfold as we progress. So there is going to be a boat ton of details coming, really fast.**

 **All this being said, be prepared for anything. I will let you guess at what that means.**

 **I am also aware of a certain Rio Awards Ceremony, and I want it to be known that I want this story to be the best story I have ever made. I am going to try and aim for at least one award (unlikely, but I have dreams too you know) I guess I won't know until ten anxiety filled days from now.**

 **I say anxiety filled because frankly there is a lot of tension going on in FFN right now. It is starting to look like a flame war between Pewdiepie and T Series on this site.**

 **I am not going to say who (because frankly it is quite a few people) who are squabbling over this and that lately for the past few months. Especially while I was away writing for Starbound. And a certain somebody made a couple other people feel bad. And somebody else did the same. It has been relatively calm for the past few weeks, but I am scared.**

 **Like honestly.**

 **Also, FFN as a website has been kinda finicky over the past month. I have no clue why, but there is a 5 percent chance that whenever I log on to the site, there is always some kind of firewall or proxy or error preventing me from doing so. And I do not know if this is true for anyone else, but it is really annoying.**

 **So if this is a problem with my account in particular, I have no idea. Sometime FFN can be out for an entire day.**

 **But like with the drama between users as I have mentioned above, the website has been acting okay for the past few weeks.**

 **Also for all of those who keep commenting on how Jewel should go find Blu here is a CONTENT SPOILER ALERT.**

 **Jewel isn't going to find Blu. She was not, she never will. She is going to know where Blu is however but she isn't going to find him. She tried and she found something, but she failed. Not her fault, remember, just a chance of bad luck.**

 **For all of you who are angry at this, let me paint a picture. You are trying to find something, no bigger than a teddy bear, in the middle of the forest, hundreds of miles away from home. So yeah, that is pretty much impossible.**

 **The only reason the Humans were able to do it is because, technology. It was only by providence that they were even aware that Blu was missing in the first place. And even this is a little far fetched in terms of the scale of technology we have today.**

 **With all that being said, imagine how unfathomably hard it would be for a love sick, tired, stressed out, macaw to find him. It isn't going to happen.**

 **Of course Blu will survive (of course. Then it would just be like some Infinity War type of thing. And nobody likes cliffhangers) but he will have to get home by himself, and with the support of the Caravan of Oddballs.**

 **That is their official name. The Caravan of Oddballs. Yep. If you don't like it, sue me.**

 **Also Monsterjam, I don't know why I didn't comment on this earlier, but are you a Trump supporter? Nothing wrong with having your own political views, but some of your comments have me guessing. Nothing personal though, just wanted to know. No pressure, your still pretty cool.**

 **Pm me if you don't feel comfortable with the above statement. I will gladly remove it under your whim. Or if you just wanna talk, I don't really care either way.**

 **Either way, I have also seen a lot of new faces on FFN recently and I have to say I am shocked. There is a lot of talent hidden in what I would like to call these Indie Writers. They aren't really big (in terms of followers, or reviews or whatnot) but they have some serious creative potential.**

 **Authors like Ry Leo, bluJewel stories, Agent Megan, Orange Macaw World and others (I think I might be included in this category too. Woohoo!) really show that this community is an extremely dynamic one. And that no matter what, new ideas will always be put forth and keep this community as strong as it is, was, and ever will be.**

 **Not that there is anything wrong with big name authors on the site, there isn't. But they can only have so many ideas. And sometimes, a few stories can get a bit repetitive and annoying**

 **(Super Rio is one of these stories that I think would have been better off had somebody left it alone for a while. It isn't a bad story at all, but it just isn't new. Especially since it has about 15 sequels, and haven't even finished the whole of one story yet. Again nothing wrong with it, just thought it needed to be said.)**

 **So that is where I am right now and I will see you all in the next chapter. Bye bye!**


	30. Cheerleaders

" _Hello? Anybody here?"_

" _Yeah, Tulio?"_

" _Oh, I'm not Tulio. I am Mauri."_

" _Mauri? What Happened to Tulio?"_

" _Details too complicated to explain by typing. He is currently in the hospital and I am covering for him."_

" _In the hospital?!"_

" _Let's just say that he had a, 'incident' with Evan and the Toronto police."_

" _I see."_

" _Don't let it discourage you. Based off of your position via global satellite, you are just outside Porto Alegre."_

" _Finally."_

" _Well, I will be your eyes and ears to the outside world from here on out. Anything goes wrong, anything catches of fire, any last minute change of plans, tell me before you do anything!"_

" _Understood. Mauri, aren't you supposed to be Tulios sidekick or something?"_

" _I am not his sidekick Blu. I am his assistant head of security in the sanctuary."_

" _Aka a sidekick."_

" _For a bird you are kind of a dick you know that?"_

" ;) _"_

" _Don't do that again."_

" _;)"_

" _I said stop!"_

" _Okay. You are way more controlling than Tulio."_

" _Shut up and don't die while you are out there, okay?"_

" _Ok."_

Mauri relaxed in his chair. It had been a few days since he left Toronto to head back to Rio. A good thing he was able to slip into Evans office before he fled to Rio, who knows what sick plans Evan has for this poor bird.

Besides, he has the once in a lifetime opportunity to communicate directly with a bird! Something he isn't giving up for the world.

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_ A sound rumbled through the building. Mauri stood up and went to the sound, the front door.

Opening the door he found nobody there.

"Strange." Mauri muttered to himself, he was about to close the door when he heard a peculiar squawking sound.

He looked down and there she was, a cyan blue bird. None other than Jewel herself.

"Jewel!" Mauri cried out, a little shocked by her sudden appearance. Jewel gave out a delighted squawk.

Mauri and Jewel only met a few times before, it took Mauri a few seconds to realize who it was. But they remembered each other.

Mauri held his hands, and Jewel flew into them. But something was wrong.

Mauri was no doctor, but he could tell that Jewel had seemed a little disturbed.

 _Oh that's right, Blu is gone! She probably came to see if he was here._ Mauri guessed correctly.

Indeed, she was there for that very reason. So Mauri took her and guided her into the computer room. There the satellite image of Blu's location was displayed as well as a chat history.

Jewel didn't understand any of it, being a bird, and squawked in confusion.

Mauri face palmed himself. What was he, stupid? It is a bird for crying out loud! As far as he knew, Blu was the only bird who knew what a computer was. How was he supposed to tell her that he knows what happened to Blu?

Then an idea popped into his head. He picked up a notepad and a pencil and began to draw. He drew a rough picture of Blu and Jewel and showed it to her.

Jewel understood that, she grew a smile on her face. Good news, basic pictographic communication was established. _I deserve an award or something like that. I am a genius!_ He thought.

He then ripped the paper in half, separating the pictures of Blu and Jewel. He held the two isolated pictures together and showed it to her.

It took Jewel a while but she nodded her head. Things were finally going her way! They know that Blu is missing.

Mauri then proceeded to draw a satellite camera hovering over Blu. He showed it to Jewel, who thought the camera looked like a bunch of useless lines.

Birds don't know what satellites are, obviously. Mauri sighed and thought for a minute. He then had another revolutionary idea, he drew an eye hovering over Blu. It had lines that conveyed that they saw him. He showed her this and she immediately understood.

She was so bewildered by all of this she couldn't believe it. So the humans knew where Blu was, and he was (as far as either of them know) alive and well! This is looking good.

After a while Jewel was invited to stay overnight at the aviary. She accepted, the journey to Rio had exhausted her.

Mauri went to the computer.

" _Blu! Blu! Are you receiving?"_

It took a few minutes…

" _I am. What's up?"_

" _Your girlfriend just came over. Told her she deserves better than you."_

" _First of all, she isn't my girlfriend she is my wife. Second of all, you really need to get a life. Seriously."_

" _Au contraire. I am the one living in the relative safety of human civilization, you are out in no mans land where anything can kill you."_

" _Aren't you supposed to be cheering me on?"_

" _That wasn't specifically on my contract. What do you want me to do, act like some kind of cheerleader for you?"_

" _Better than what you are doing now."_

" _Go Blu! Please don't die! Go Blu! Even though the odds of you coming home are 1 billion to one. Go Blu! Do not die! Go go go yeah!"_

" _Stop it. Now I will have nightmares for the rest of my life."_

" _Haha."_


	31. Boudica

The Caravan had long passed Porto Alegre. They now set their sights on the coastal city of Curitiba. But there was one small problem.

"We can't continue on this journey, we have absolutely no food!" Clyde exclaimed, his belly hurt, he was tired, and worst of all there were no Humans to give them food for miles.

"Starving isn't the greatest of our worries," Said Aberdeen, who was clearly stressed, "We can survive for a month or so without it. But what are we going to do about water? We will die without it?"

"Maybe it'll rain." Blu tried to usher the group to continue on, but he too was feeling the pangs of hunger starting to hurt him.

"Not likely. There hasn't been a cloud in the sky for days." Diante looked at the sky, then at Blu. His voice was raspy and deep.

"Look Blu, we have to face the facts. We are not going to survive the journey. Unless by providence, some miracle were to happen." Clyde said.

"I think we can all agree, push comes to shove, we can just eat Clyde." Diante joked around.

Everybody around chuckled a little, Clyde too. It helped to ease the pain they all felt in their stomach.

"Look, we continue for a few miles extra. If there isn't a lake or by some miracle we find food and water, we turn back. Agreed?" Blu negotiated.

"Fine by me." Julius said, everybody nodded their head in agreement.

"Great, lets go."

They continued walking, but it seemed as if they were going to have to turn around. No lake, pond, river, stream, or anything drinkable was nearby for miles. Even though they had the GPS Mauri previously warned them not to stray too far off course, lest the connection they have with the satellite were to die.

They entered into a stretch of woodlands off to the side of the highway. Automatically, they realized something wasn't right. Like something… or somebody was watching them.

Occasionally they heard the sounds of leaves being shaken, wings fluttering. They became nervous and started moving a little faster.

"I think you guys might wanna climb on my back." Clyde offered the birds, who had up to this point been walking on foot.

They climbed on and Clyde began to walk/jog. Jogging became running, running went to full on sprinting.

Something indeed was following them. But no matter how fast Clyde ran it was still on their tail (quite literally). Clyde had no idea how long it was bit he soon became really tired.

And then it had caught and ensnared them. They all fell onto some sort of sick trap. A rope vine was tied around all of their waists and they were hanging from the tress.

"Gag, whoever the hell you are let us go!" Diante yelled out, to nobody in particular. Soon the captor, or should I say captors, revealed themselves from the shadows. A group of around 8 Peregrine Falcons.

They all held very sharp spears, their normally Grey and brown feathers were smothered in dirt and camouflage. And they looked mean.

"Who are you? Answer me?" the biggest of the falcons called out to them, he approached them with his spear raised, ready to stab them at any point.

"Stop, we surrender! We were just traveling and got a bit lost!" Blu yelled.

"Turn us loose!" Julius cried.

"Help!" everybody else shouted.

"Silence. Tio, free them." The leader called out to one of his soldiers. The soldier approached them a cut the wire holding them together. And they all fell to the ground.

"Leave, all of you and never come back. If you do, we will kill you!" The leader threatened.

"What is all of this noise going on down here?" A falcon called out from the trees above. Everybody looked up at him.

He was definitely older than all the rest, yet he seemed wiser and more experienced too. He was covered in what appeared to be ceremonial leaves.

"Boudica, we found these intruders lurking around our territory. They could be spies or soldiers from that cursed Alai." The leader of the pack said.

"Nonsense," Said Boudica, "Let me speak to them."

The other birds stepped aside, yet held their spears in case they need to protect Boudica. He approached the Caravan.

"What is your purpose here?" he asked in a gentle voice.

Everybody looked around to give an answer. Blu spoke first.

"We were just trying to travel through. We were looking for food and water to complete our journey. We are sorry if we were trespassing…"

"Trespassing? Don't you know that our people welcomes weary travelers from all over. Never fear, we will not harm you. In fact, I want to help you. Follow me." Boudica requested.

The Caravan was confused, but it beats dying.

The original group of warriors also followed them as an escort.

Boudica showed them around their village. It was certainly magnificent. A river flowed though their territory, birds as far as the eye could see. Homes were carved out of tree trunks, great and magnificent palaces were built in the tree tops like a wondrous treehouse.

The natives of this village looked at them like they were strangers. They were of course, but it seemed like this inspired some kind of fear inside of them.

Especially once they saw Clyde. They looked at them as if they had some horrible kind of disease and they needed to be removed or eradicated.

"Hey, I think these jerks are eyeballing me." Diante quietly whispered to his group.

"They are, just try and act natural." Blu responded.

"Natural? You hear that, everybody? Natural? The hell I look like a falcon to you?"

"Shut up, both of you. He is about to say something" Aberdeen interjected, mentioning Boudica.

"I don't think I introduced myself properly. I am Boudica, leader of this village you see here. In fact, this village is one of many united under our feathers. We are the people of Vetran. And we welcome people like you with an open heart, and wings." Boudica said, leading to one of the hollows carved out into a tree.

They crossed over a bridge made out of leaves in order to get to the hollow. It was a beautiful sight indeed.

After settling everybody inside of what appeared to be his own home, Boudica began to talk to them once more.

"I am gravely sorry about how we first met. You see, we are at war with these evil bastards in the west. The people of Kildare. They are ruthless savages, they eat other birds, they hunt for sport, they hang the skulls of their victims on their grimy walls. They are sick and vile, and threaten everything we hold dear to our little egalitarian society."

"We are sorry for trespassing, and if you want, we could leave." Clyde spoke up, he wasn't inside the hollow (he was too big) but he was right outside the entrance where he could see and hear everything.

"No, I insist that you stay." Boudica quickly walked over to the cat. This bird seemed to have no fear at all. While all the other birds cowered in fear at the sight of Clyde, he seemed not to notice that he was an apex predator who could devour everybody in the village in seconds. Good thing Clyde wasn't too fascinated with birds.

"I think we need a little time to think about it. If you don't mind?" Blu asked.

After a while the group were allotted sometime alone to talk about what they wanted to do.

"If they are giving us food and water, I say we stay for the night." Aberdeen said.

"But why? Why are they being so generous?" Blu shook his head in doubt.

"It does seem a little suspicious now that you mention it. But if we don't take this offer, we are going to die out there."

"If they have food, I am staying." Julius said with a laugh.

"I don't think you guys understand the full gravity of the situation. Complete strangers just invited us to stay over and eat at their home. Hasn't your mother ever told you that isn't a good idea." Clyde interjected.

"For the record, I don't have a mother." Blu and Diante said at the same time. They both looked at each other. Only for a split second.

"Whatever. But this is the same that we are facing. These guys are strangers! I repeat, we do not who they are or where they came from." Clyde said.

"What are you suggesting?" Diante asked him.

"Bloody fucking hell, hasn't it gotten through your thick skull! These are strangers. We do not know if they are slipping poison in our food or whatever." Clyde yelled at him, frustrated.

"Technically, aren't we strangers to you guys. Yet you chose to trust us enough to follow us and help us get back home. Even though you didn't have to. Even though you didn't want to. You did it anyway." Diante said.

"Obviously, you aren't that weirded out by strangers. We are basically strangers to you. And of they are offering food, we should take it. Better than starving to death."

 _Wait, where is the GPS?_ Blu thought.

But just then Boudica entered into the area they were in, he was surrounded by soldiers, and they looked angry.

"Explain yourselves! What are you spies?" Boudica shouted at them.

The group all huddled together to form a protective half circle. Clyde drew out his claws and hissed at them. The birds looked around to protect themselves, they were scared for a big fight.

"What is the meaning of this?" Boudica held up the GPS in his talons.

"Wait, that's my GPS! Hey give it back!" Blu shouted.

"Not until you explain to me what this is! After all we have some for you, we took you in, offered food, gave you shelter, and it turns out that you are all spies! Working for the evil Kildare peoples? How dare you!" Boudica in his fit of rage dropped the device. When it landed on the ground, it turned on.

Boudica and his soldiers jumped back in surprise. And they looked at it as if it were some kind of alien artifact. Basically it was. They had never before seen Human technology.

They looked at it in fear. But then they stopped.

"This can only mean one thing…" Boudica said quietly. He then, heeled down with his head down. All the soldiers did the same.

"You are the almighty one spoken of in the oracle…" Boudica began.

"Wait. We aren't alm-" Blu was about to say something, but Diante hushed him by putting his wing over his beak.

"Yes, yes we are. We are the great ones. Fear us!" Diante said.

Blu took Diante by the shoulder and dragged him into a bash.

"What are you doing?! These people are insane! We have to go now!" Blu yelled at him in a hushed tone.

Diante pushed Blu off of him.

"Look, whatever, or whoever they think we are, it is better than us getting stabbed. Do you want to die?" Blu remained silent.

"Didn't think so. So act cool. Got it?"

Blu nodded his head.

The two emerged from the bush, and Boudica began to speak.

"You must be the almighty fire lord, that came to save us from the evil Kildarians!"

Blu wanted to scream no at the top of his lungs. He just wanted to go home. Not have to deal with any of this. But he didn't say that.

This was not going to end well.


	32. Fireworks

Boudica was mad, insane, crazy, whatever you want to call it.

The Caravan was grouped together at the front of a big field of land, an audience gathered around them, and Boudica sat like a king in the middle. He was so impressed by their GPS, or as he calls it "Fire Magic", he demanded that they do some sort of miracle to impress him.

Everybody stood there quite nervous. They didn't know what Boudica (or anybody in the stadium for the matter) considered as a miracle. But, if they were impressed by light coming from a computer, they should be impressed by whatever else they have.

"Okay guys, huddle up." Blu called everybody around him, as they debated on what to do.

"You happen to have any other fancy cadets to let these guys drool over?" Diane asked.

"No, but we have the GPS. We can make use of that." Blu said.

"I have a bright idea…" Julius began.

"Julius, I've told you already, we cannot hardware the GPS into a bomb an blow it up." Clyde was getting bored of having to repeat himself over and over again.

"Why don't we just ask the Humans on the other side for some tips? They should be able to help us, right?" Aberdeen recalled the fact that Blu was able to communicate with Humans through the GPS.

"But what do we ask them for?" Blu asked.

"Maybe a fire? They should like fire."

"Lets go with that."

Blu got to work right away, he sent a few messages to Mauri while everybody else tried to keep the audience entertained.

Julius and Clyde out on a special show that made the audience laugh, Aberdeen used her own talents to dazzle the crowd, and Diante tried his best to keep up.

" _Mauri! Mauri!"_

" _Whaaat?"_

" _I need your help, urgently. I need to make a fire! But a huge fire!"_

" _Ummm. Give me a moment while I consult the internet."_

" _Hurry!"_

" _Okay got it, sending you the instructions now…"_

Blu got to work setting everything up and making sure everything was as mesmerizing as possible. He gathered firewood, sand, powder, and anything else Mauri told him to use.

It was a hour, and the audience was getting bored of the show put on by the rest of the group.

"Blu, these people need something more! They are getting tired of it!" Diante told Blu, after being booed for his own act.

"Never fear, everything is ready and is in place! Everybody gather round!"

The group quickly gathered around Blu. Blu took his talons and scratched them against a piece of firewood. The heat generated turned into flames, and the flame spread quickly. It traveled up to the loaded compound of explosive ingredients, and finally, BOOM!

The initial shock sent everybody in the audience screaming, but once they saw the dazzle, sparkle, and crackle of the fireworks show, they began to cheer.

Fire decked the night sky, and a vast array of colors were ignited in the air. Smoke littered the area but the people didn't care. Never before had they seen this, they had thought it was impossible.

Blu looked at Boudica, his jaw literally hung open. A few birds even had tears in their eyes. It was quite a sight indeed.

The fiery spectacle ended, and all that remained was a fire that was scorching the grass in the area. Applause, cheering, and even a few whistles emerged from the audience.

Boudica came up to them and welcomed them once again, "This was amazing," he began , "never in all my years did I see something so magnificent such as this. You truly are the greatest magicians."

After all of that Boudica gave them a place to stay and sleep, they even managed to find Clyde a bed. And after everybody had woken up, Boudica presented them with countless containers full of food, water and other supplies for their journey. And even a makeshift saddle for Clyde, so they could load it all on to him (Clyde resented of course).

The Caravan departed and were on their way, they continued their course after that wonderful miracle. Everybody was so ecstatic, so deeply happy, Aberdeen and Diante kissed each other, everybody else cheered and shouted at the sky. They had food and water! Enough to last them for days, weeks, even the whole journey!

"Good job everybody, and Blu, you really did a great job with explosions. We have food! Finally!" Clyde cried out.

They walked a little while more before they camped and had their first feast in a long, long time.


	33. I'm Upset!

**I'm upset!**

 **Fifty thousand on my head is disrespect, ayy.**

 **So offended that I had to double check, ayy.**

 **Okay I gonna stop. I am sorry, honest.**

 **But honestly, I am very upset. Why?**

 **People apparently think Jewel is some kind of bad mother or wife. And I have to say one thing.**

 **To all those people who say or think that, you probably have not watched the Movie. Okay.**

 **I mean, it is okay if you don't like Jewel as a character. Some people don't even like Blu as a character. That is fine. But to say that Jewel is a unfaithful, a cheater, and somebody who manipulates Blu, newsflash, Jewel really isn't.**

 **I bring this up now because a certain somebody just PM'd me and asked me specifically to make it so that Jewel and Roberto develop a relationship. And quote "So that Jewel shows her true colors".**

 **You know who you are.**

 **Jewel is not unfaithful or anything. And for those who disagree let me paint this picture.**

 **You're a child. You lose your parents, your family, and all of your friends. You fall into a state of depression. You meet the love of your life, and for the moment, you are pretty happy. But then you find out your family is alive. And you go out and meet them. What do you do?**

 **Are you still going to stay so attached to your lover? Or are you going to try and get to know your family again? Of course you are going to choose the latter.**

 **And for all of those who say they will choose the former, you are a liar! Like seriously.**

 **Did Jewel overreact by forcefully moving her family to the middle of the forest? I think so. Was Blu upset by this, and Jewel didn't know because she was having a field day with her family. Maybe.**

 **But is she a bad mother and wife? No she isn't! She did the same thing I would've done.**

 **Just wanted you all to know that, on to the chapter.**

[Linda] "I worry about you Tulio. You should be here with me and Fernando."

[Tulio] "I know, but I have to stay here. I cannot let Evan get away with this, he has to pay!"

[Linda] "Look, as much as I am for strangling hon to death right now, you have to make sure that you don't die."

[Tulio] "I'm being discharged from the hospital tomorrow. And I have spoken to the Police and they said that they are working on it."

[Linda] "You can't trust the police, Tulio! They could all be on his payroll you don't know!"

[Tulio] "But that's my best bet. Thank God for free Healthcare, at least we wont have to pay for that."

[Linda] "True. Just make sure that you get back home safe. And remember why we are all here to begin with."

[Tulio] "I will get Blu back home. I promise."

[Linda] "Thank you."

The phone call ended, how long had the two been talking? It was probably an hour, or it felt that way. Day in and day out he was stuck in stupid wheelchair. He needed to be wheeled around by some nurse he didn't know, talk to the police who probably don't care, and all while trying to bring a bird back home who probably will die.

It was a big order. But he wasn't alone. As much as he was fighting, Linda and Fernando were too. Mauri had taken over communications in Rio, while Linda and Fernando dealt with the press in New York.

And here he was, alone, In the City of Toronto. God bless Canada, if it wasn't for the free Healthcare he had been receiving, he would've probably drowned in debt. At least he has enough money to flee to America if things go pear shaped.

Still, he was upset. He wasn't about to let Evan slip away that easily. His question however, was why? Wasn't Evans end goal to get Blu back home? Then again, they were about to launch an operation to capture and retrieve Blu.

Sometimes he regretted ever sending that message. But another question, why dint Evan get Linda's permission to do so first? It was her bird, she owns that bird, not Evan. Whatever he was trying to do with Blu must've been something Tulio and Linda wouldn't have approved of.

Then again, maybe he is just being skeptical. But then why did Evan have such a adverse reaction to Tulio telling Blu to go the other way? If he was just trying to bring Blu back to society, shouldn't he have just told them that and tried again, rather than using a rogue officer to beat him up? So many questions, so little time.

What he did know was this: Evan could not be trusted and he wants Blu for his own purposes. Linda and Tulio want to bring Blu back home alive. Whoever gets to him first, gets Blu.

How far was he willing to go for just one Blue Macaw. On paper, it doesn't sound like much, but one of those macaws can cost thousands just because of how rare they are.

Tulio understood now.

Blu was so valuable, he was worth thousands, maybe even millions of dollars. If Evan could get his hands on him, he would be able to do every experiment, test and whatever else they do to him. Then when they are done, they could sell him to the highest bidder.

Linda might not realize it, but she was outstandingly lucky. A bird that is worth millions of dollars just happened to land right in front of her house for free as a baby. The odds of that happening are probably 1/900,000,000,000,000 or something like that.

But Tulio has the one thing that Evan doesn't. He has communications with Blu. Something Evan would kill for (quite literally). Mauri took it to Rio far away from Evan and his gang of hippies.

Tulio turned on the TV that was in the hospital room. A FOX News program. He saw the host and Linda herself. The program titled: Bring Blu Back .

And Linda was acing it.

 _That's my girl,_ Tulio thought as he changed the channel.

 _Ring! Ring!_

Tulio picked up the phone. It was Mauri.

[Tulio] "Hello"

[Mauri] "Tulio. You are gonna want to hear this."

[Tulio] "Don't keep me waiting."

[Mauri] "I won't. Judging off of Blu's average speed, he is only about five hours away from Rio De Janeiro."

[Tulio] "Wait, say that again!"

[Mauri] "He is only five hours, five hours as in five sets of sixty minutes, away from Rio."

Tulio let out a big Ya-HOO! After.

[Tulio] "This is great!"

[Mauri] "Actually, it isn't."

[Tulio] "Huh? What do you mean?"

A long pause from Mauri.

[Mauri] "… I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news Dr. Monteiro. But you know most devices need to be charged in order to work right?"

[Tulio] "Yeah…"

[Mauri] "Sadly for us, GPS' are one of those devices. And the one that kept our communication with Blu, just died."

[Tulio] "You are joking right?"

[Mauri] "I wish I was. We do not know where Blu is right now. He doesn't know where he is going, and for all I know he could be walking straight into another trap set by Evan. He doesn't know where I am so he can't stop by and say hello, and frankly, I don't even think he knows I am in the city."

[Tulio] "Damn it! Well he is only five hours away. There can't be too much room for error, right?"

[Mauri] "I wouldn't bet on it. The chances of him screwing up and missing Rio completely is about 50/50 give or take. The last message I sent to him told him to head North. And everything else went blank."

[Tulio] "How many Kilometers was he from Rio before everything went down."

[Mauri] "Twenty. Not too long for a Human. But remember these are birds."

[Tulio] "But Blu isn't alone right? I mean he is with those other birds and a cat. Maybe they know how to navigate?"

[Mauri] "Remember, Blu is special. He is pretty smart. The other animals we aren't sure about. We cannot count on them for his survival. They are just animals, they might eat Blu if things take a turn for the worst."

[Tulio] "Lets hope that doesn't happen."

[Mauri] "I've tried everything I could do to get a signal from Blu, but I have nothing. I only have a predicted route that he might follow, if he travels true North. But that course wouldn't take him straight to Rio, he would only just barely enter the outskirts of the city. Any suggestions?"

[Tulio] "Pray. That's all."

[Mauri] "Aye-Aye."

When the phone call ended, Tulio had so many questions. Thank goodness he was being discharged from the hospital tomorrow.


	34. Family (Part 1)

The Caravan had been traveling, but they were blind as bats for all they knew.

Blu tried anything he could to get the GPS to work. No such luck. No sign of life anywhere inside the device. So they had to stop moving until they figure out what direction they were heading in first.

"Okay everybody, gather around." Blu called everybody around him while he drew a basic map in the ground.

"We are somewhere here," Blu drew a X to mark the spot, "And Rio is over here," he drew a circle not too far away.

"We have to travel north towards Rio, so we ha e to follow the North Star. Anybody knows how to travel by starlight?" Blu asked around.

Not a single wing or paw.

"Didn't think so. Until we figure out true north we are doomed. Now I have one clue to figure out where we are going. Based off the location the GPS went down we should be somewhere a few Kilometers off the outskirts of town. If we go down the correct path we should arrive at a pocket of suburbia off to the side of Rio. But there are two places to go, and we can only travel by night. The first path, I calculated, is to following that star," Blu pointed to a bright red star in the dusk sky.

It was hard to see. The sun was setting and it blended in with the dusk sky.

"The other path is following the moon…" Blu pointed to the moon.

"We split into two groups. One follows the red star. One follows the moon. If you reach that pocket of suburbia stay there. We should reach there before sunrise. So if it takes longer than it should to get there, turn back around come here, and then follow the other path. Understood?"

"But isn't this a bit dangerous? I mean we would do better if we stayed together. Right?" Clyde asked.

"We do not have time on our hands. We have to travel and reach suburbia before sunrise. And if we travel as a group we will waste precious time. Any other questions?"

None.

"Good. Well we should get started. Lets split up into groups and arrange our food. Clyde, Aberdeen, Julius, you guys follow the red star. Me and Diante will follow the moon."

Everybody agreed and they split up the food. They had a final meal and they split on their way into the unknown.

"Alright. Remember if you don't get there by sunrise, come back here!" Blu called out to the other group. He could only faintly hear Aberdeen yell, _we got it!_

And Blu and Diante were together, alone.

"I guess its just the two of us huh?" Blu asked.

"Yeah." Diante said back.

They kept walking silently. Both of them carried a makeshift pack on their backs. It held their food and stuff they needed.

The silence was killing Blu, so he decides to strike up a conversation, but before he could say anything Diante spoke.

"I know why you out me in your group." He said.

"Oh?"

"You want to talk about me and Jewel and the tribe."

Now that Blu thought about it, he did think that was a good question.

"Yeah, I guess…"

Diante sighed. He looked up at the sky before he started speaking again.

"Well, how did I put this…"

"Start from the beginning." Blu said.

Diante nodded his head.

"Okay… Me and Jewel were great friends before it happened. I first met her after my family was captured and killed by humans. I was a chock when it happened. And I remember it like it was yesterday. My kid brother fell out of the tree when I tried to save him. But he fell anyways and got captured. My parents had went out to get food and they never came back. After it all happened, Jewel's father came to see what had happened, and he found me. A tiny, sad little baby all alone. And then he introduced me to Jewel…"

That story sounded familiar to Blu. Where did he hear that before?

"Well, me and Jewel were close. We were like green on grass. Inseparable. We weren't lovers or anything but we were just good friends. And then it happened…"

Diante stopped.

"What happened?" Blu asked.

"Those humans came back again. And they burned down the whole forest. And Jewel and Roberto were caught in a trap. And they begged me to help them. They screamed at me, trying to get out. They cried out and their screams still pierce my heart to this day. And I just left them there. Like nothing ever happened. I walked away. I hoped that they would die so I wouldn't have to feel guilty anymore. So I won't have to face them ever again. I was a coward. I should've died there."

He fell silent.

"After, when I found out she was still alive. We hated each other. I ran away, again. Nothing was ever the same. The fire killed everything. The fire and ash and death and pain. I wanted to die then Blu, but I didn't. I didn't do anything."

"Wow… I didn't know. I am sorry." Blu said, silently. He didn't see this side of Diante before.

"You are the one that's sorry? What a riot! You should hate me now. That's what they all do. I almost killed your wife. And her best friend. Damn."

"I am sorry because I went through the same thing as a kid. I mean, the thing with the fire and stuff didn't happen, but I was a baby bird. I woke up to the sound of music. And I started dancing. But then the loggers came and they got me too."

Diante seemed to take special interest in this.

"What kind of music?" He asked.

"Some kinda samba I think. I think it went like, something like, this? …All the birds of a feather…"

"I remember that song…" Diante said.

"Wait… Could this mean that we are…" Blu didn't finish his sentence.

Diante shook his head. Impossible. It couldn't be. It shouldn't be. It can't be.

"No… no, no, no. It's not possible." Diante said.

The two were silent for the next few minutes, as they kept following the moon.


	35. Family (Part 2)

Tulio was asleep in his hotel room. He planned to stay there for another night, and then he would fly to New York to reunite with his family.

He was allowed to leave the hospital the night before, but didn't want to rush things too much, unless he was to aggravate one of his injuries. Which would mean having to spend another few days or so in the hospital. Something he wasn't going to do willingly.

His phone rung, Mauri came up on the caller ID.

Must be important. Mauri hated losing sleep, he would never call at 2AM just to talk.

[Tulio] "Mauri, what's wrong with you? Its 2AM."

[Mauri] "Shove it, Tulio. Blu is in danger."

[Tulio] "Mauri I know that. He has been in danger for the past two months…"

[Mauri] "Well this is an immediate threat. Turn on the news."

[Tulio] "Whatever this is, it better be good."

Tulio switched on the TV. The anchorwoman read a news story, in Rio.

"…We are currently tracking this huge forest fire moving along the greater Rio De Janeiro area. This storm is huge, about five miles across and growing. Many citizens in the suburbs of the Rio metropolitan area have already evacuated further inside of the city, and the Brazilian Armed Forces have been cooperating with Firefighters from around the globe to battle this raging fire. Many worry because the famous bird, Blu and his gang of other animals have been in this area recently. And this could present a serious threat to the endangered macaw…"

[Tulio] "…"

[Mauri] "Hello?"

[Tulio] "Mauri, Blu is about to die out there."

[Mauri] "Maybe not. There is about a 2 % chance that Blu might actually avoid the firestorm."

[Tulio] "Understood, get Linda on the phone."

[Mauri] "Right away"


	36. Family (Part 3)

Blu and Diante walked on. Through the forests to find their way. It was nearly daybreak and they haven't found a single sign that they were anywhere near where they should be.

"Its times like these that I really wish that I brought a spare GPS. Now here we are, alone… you think Clyde and the rest of them got any further?" Blu asked.

"Probably. I think we should turn back. It is about to hit daybreak and we should follow them, you know."

"Yeah, I know, I know. Let me just survey the area from the sky one last time and we will head back alright?"

"Fine by me." Diante said as he sat down on a rock nearby.

Blu took off into the air, looking for any sign of their proximity. But he couldn't see anything. Something caught his attention in the darkness of the night however. He turned to his left and saw something big and orange. Like a giant ball of light coming from the forest.

"That's not a light… it's a… (gasp)!"

Blu flew back to Diante.

"Diante, Diante, we have to get out of here! Now! There isn't much time, I think it has already caught up to us!" Blu panicked and grabbed Diante's bad wing and tried pulling him to move.

"Ow! Ouch! Blu, that's my bad wing!" Diante slapped Blu over the face so he could calm down.

"Blu, what the hell are you talking about?"

"A forest fire Diante. It is moving fast towards here and if we don't move we are going to be cooked alive! Unless you want to be turned into a thanksgiving turkey, lets go!" Blu and Diante both began to run through the forest in a general direction of where they came from.

Too bad Blu didn't see that the fire had already engulfed the forest in their path too. And they were running straight towards the wall of fire.

Blu and Diante stopped in their tracks when a flaming tree branch collapsed onto the ground beside them.

The fire was all around them now, the trees all being burned to ashes.

"Blu, come on, I see a opening. Let's go!" Diante said as he rushed towards his escape. But Blu wasn't so lucky.

A heavy tree branch fall onto Blu from the sky, pinning him down to the floor. He was stuck.

"Diante! Diante! I need your help! Come on, pull me out! Wait, Diante where are you going?" Blu asked as he saw Diante slowly start to try and run away.

"Diante! What in Christ sakes is wrong with you? Come back here and help me up!" Blu tried pushing on the log, but it was too heavy. It was getting harder to breath, and he felt a sharp pain in his talons as if something had snapped there.

"Diante! Don't do this again!"

Diante stopped in his tracks and turned around to see Blu. The fire was coming closer to him, if Blu didn't get out of there soon, he would indeed by cooked.

"I'm sorry, I am so sorry Blu."

The pain Blu was feeling was unbearable. The log seemed to have punctured his skin somewhere in his stomach, and he was bleeding. His talons hurt, his breathing was restricted, and blood stained his feathers and was flowing free.

"Diante… Ow! Y-y… you gave me your word! You promised!"

 _Flashback to when Blu and Diante were in the ventilation system of the animal shelter in Buenos Aires_

" _I need you to promise me, that you will get me back in one piece. And if I am ever hurt beyond the point of repair. Or it seems like I would die anyway, I need you to finish the job."_

" _Alright, sure."_

" _No, I don't need that, I need a promise. I need your word."_

" _Okay… I promise"_

 _End of Flashback._

"Y-You remembered?" Diante asked.

"Of course I remembered! Now are you going to let me die here, and recreate the trauma that you have been through in the past. Betray me like you did Jewel and Roberto, and let me down. Or have I met a decent bird who is at least going to finish the job!"

Diante was bewildered by it all. He could barely see Blu. The fire was coming too close, and Blu began to blur out of his sight.

He picked up a pretty heavy stone, and walked over to Blu. He wasn't going to let what happened with Jewel happen again.

Not now, not here, not ever. Nobody would know, Blu could finally die, and he could leave. Nobody would care. Nothing, nobody.

Diante approached Blu, and saw him. He was struggling. He was fighting. Blood stained his body and he was making sound like he was in excruciating pain. No, Blu never asked him to do it. Blu wanted to live.

Diante raised the stone, high above Blu. Blu looked him in the eye.

Diante let his arm slack.

"So which is it?"

Diante stopped, the stone hovering just a few centimeters from Blu.

"Huh? You were never sorry for your actions. You never cared. Everything that happened between you and Jewel happened because of you, and here you are about to do it to me! Everything between you and Aberdeen is a lie too."

Aberdeen. He wanted to be with her so he could forget about his past. But how could he if he does this?

"You are a the most dirty, evil, low-hitting person I have ever met! You never are sorry for anything you do! You don't even have the courage to help me!"

Diante tossed the stone. He climbed next to Blu and helped him free from the log. It was very heavy and after it was clear, he hauled Blu over his shoulder.

"I'm sorry. Come on, lets go." Diante said to Blu as the two left as fast as possible. The heat of the fire was unbearable.

They moved until they were ahead of the wall of fire, when they tried to make themselves comfortable, they kept walking. The two of them alone.

Again it was silent between the two. They stopped after daybreak. They were way behind schedule.

But being late sure does beat the alternative. Better late than boiling in a fire.

The two rested in a area of the forest that was torched. They were both covered in mud, dirt, ashes, and Blue's blood. Something they had to pay attention to now.

After dealing with that by tying a long leaf around Blu's waist, they had their first meal.

"Thanks Diante, I guess I owe you one." Blu said to him while eating some of the rations they took when they went off.

"You don't. You made me realize something-"

A sound echoed from the burnt out terrain beyond. It sounded like howling.

"You think that is the rest of them, Clyde, Aberdeen, and Julius?" Blu asked.

"No. I don't." Suddenly a look of terror spread across Diante's face.

"What? What's the matter?" Blu asked.

Diante didn't respond.

"Who is it? Who is out there?"

Diante shook his head and looked at Blu.

"Wolves."


	37. Family (Part 4)

"Come on, we have to go!" Diante tried to usher Blu on, Blu had his wings wrapped around Diante neck and chest for support. But he was still limping badly. They weren't gonna outrun them.

"Ow!" Blu yelped as he stepped on his foot a bit too hard. The wolves were gaining on them. They couldn't see them, hear them or even smell them. But they could feel them.

They could feel the bloodthirsty savage hunger that loomed within them. And it was gaining fast. With Blu hurt they weren't gonna outrun them. No way.

Blu stopped the two of them.

"To the trees Diante! We have to get up there!"

"How?"

"We climb, there isn't much time, hurry!" Blu broke away from Diante and limped as fast he could towards a tree. He began to skillfully scale the trunk of the tree to get to a higher branch. But Diante didn't know how to climb trees, and his wing was still hurt.

"Diante, how come you aren't following me?"

"I don't know how to climb!"

Come on, take my wing!"

Blu reached out his wing for Diante to grab onto, when Diante did so, he began to climb back up the tree.

They were there. Blu could see them out of the corner of his eye. The plants moved aside and they revealed a gray wolf. The wolf was followed by the rest of his pack.

Blu hurried as fast as he could, Dia the grabbed onto Blu and climbed at the same time. One of the wolves lashed out after them, trying to follow them up the tree.

Diante swore to himself that he could feel its hot breath on his talon, as he kept climbing up.

They were just out of reach from the wolf pack. Blu and Diante hurried onto a tree branch, exhausted and breathing hard.

"That was too close," Diante said, out of breath.

"Agreed,"

One of the wolves, the presumed leader of the pack, started to laugh a little.

"You fools. Wolves can go weeks without food. You will haven't to come down sometime, and when you do we will be right here!" The wolf sneered at the two.

"I didn't think about that…" Blu said.

The wolves were understandably hungry. The forest fire burned down half of the trees in sight, and that meant most of the food was gone.

The tree Diante and Blu were atop of bore no leaves, neither dis its neighbors. They were all dead, no sign of life inside of them. Diante and Blu only had the rations they had taken from the rest of the group. Wait…

"Diante?" Blu called his name.

"Hm?"

"Did you bring the food that we brought with us here?"

"No, I thought you had it."

"I don't…"

Both of them groaned in pain. Diante looked exhausted. He looked towards the sky. Maybe the stars in heaven had an answer?

"We are gonna die here. There is no way we could last a week on this tree." Diante said.

Blu began to sob. Tears falling out of eyes.

"Why? We were so close. We are right here! Right at Rio! I was so close…" Blu cried inside of his own wings.

"Blu, sometimes, life just isn't fair…"

"I'm sorry Jewel. I'm not coming home. Not today, tomorrow, the week after, never. I'm sorry kids (sniff) daddy's not gonna be there for you!"

"Blu…"

"All my life! I have done nothing but live by the manual! I have played by the rules! I have followed everything and done what everybody said!" Blu started to get angry.

"Blu…"

"Why? I have done everything right! And I still get the short end of the stick! I can't (sniff) I can't die here!"

"Blu!"

"Diante! I swear to god if you say one more word I will kill you right here!"

"Fine, be that way. Die here in your own misery. If you wanna give up, give up, doesn't matter to me. I've seen a dead body before, I have seen people pass on."

Blu grabbed Diante by the neck and pinned him against the wall. Nobody had ever seen Blu this upset before. He had lost it.

"Diante! Ever since I met you have done nothing but complain and whine, and be absolute deadweight throughout this journey! I hate you! Because of you, I will never see my family again! Because of you…. I-I hate you!"

Blu shoved Diante away, he went to the other side of the branch and buried his head in his wings as he kept sobbing.

Diante said nothing.

The wolves were out of sight by now, but they indeed were still there. Occasionally the pair could hear one of them howl at the sky or bark at each other. The sun was setting in the sky. Blu wondered if he would ever see Clyde, Julius and Aberdeen again.

He worked his whole life to try and build up his perfect family. He did everything Jewel told him, he raised three children that he thought was perfect, he adapted to living in the tribe. All of it. And here jet comes crashing down.

The part he hated the most, was that the reason why this was all happening was sitting right there. Next to him. He took all of Blu's hopes and dreams and then slaughtered them with a axe.

Sometimes he wondered if Diante delighted in destroying peoples lives. Well this was the ultimate test, one they would really be gone forever. Jewel wouldn't have to worry about Diante anymore. He would've starved to death here on this god forsaken tree.

Hours of silence passed between the two. They were already miserable, and now this. The hunger was starting to kick in. They hadn't eaten since the morning. Actually no, since the morning before. They didn't even get to eat their food before the wolves chased them away.

Blu was starting to regret shoving Diante aside so harsh. He was after all only a bird too. He couldn't do that to him.

"Diante… I'm sorry. For what I said that is." Blu said to him.

"I've heard that sentence too many times from too many different people for it to really hurt anymore. Apology accepted, Blu. And I am sorry too. For being such a jerk. Its who I am, you know." Diante muttered to him.

"Aye. Listen, what were you trying to tell me? While I was freaking out?"

"Sitting here angry and upset, and hungry and cold is no way to pass on. If we are going to really meet the big guy in the sky, then we should do it with happiness. We shouldn't die here as enemies, we die as…"

Blu looked on at Diante, waiting for him to say the next word.

"Brothers." Diante finished.

"You really think we are brothers?"

"Come on, Blu. We look exactly alike. Except for color. We have the exact same memory of our childhood."

Blu grew a smile on his face. He stood up. Diante stood up.

They went in for a tight hug. Both of their wings wrapped around the other. Tears coming out of both of their eyes.

"I've finally found you." Diante said to Blu.

"Yeah, I guess I die with family. The best way to go, right?"

"Right on. Those wolves may get a new meal, but we found each other."

"They broke the hug. And they started to talk. About life, family, why the sky is blue, and the way the world works. They were happy. Even in the face of death.

 **I hope you guys liked this because frankly, this is the hardest amount of detail I have put into a chapter in weeks. Sorry for the delay.**


	38. Family (Part 5)

**Sorry for the delay. Enjoy guys.**

Diante and Blu were still up in the tree, they couldn't see them anymore. But they knew they were still there. Waiting, lurking in the bushes.

"We have to get down from here. One way or another…." Diante said.

"How? Your wing is broken, I don't even know what is wrong with my foot, we can't do anything!" Blu said, regretfully.

Good question. How were they going to do that? They had to, time was ticking, they had no idea where Clyde and the rest of the group was. They spent in total nearly two and half days off the trail. Too much time. Who knows what the other three were thinking?

"Look, Blu. Wasn't it you who gave me the courage to leave that animal cage we were in at Buenos Aires?" Diante asked his (supposed) brother.

"Mhm…."

"You gave me hope and courage. If it wasn't for you I would be rotting away somewhere inside of a stinky cage next to some diseased pigeon or something!"

"Yeah, so?"

"I need you to do it again!"

Blu laughed a little.

"What do you think this is, Diante? Huh, this isn't some fairytale where the knights in shining armor always win, and come back home. This is real life. And in real life, things don't always end happily ever after." Blu said.

"You're the exact opposite of what I just asked you to do, you know that right?" Diante looked at him, disappointedly.

"What are you, half stupid?" Blu jested.

"Well if I am half Blue macaw, that means the part of me that is half stupid, is one hundred percent you!"

"Your math is blowing my mind right now."

"Come on, we need to get out of here. So either you help me get out, or I leave you here to die! Pick or choose, Blu!"

"We are both dead men, Diante. Both dead men! The problem is some of us don't know that yet." Blu hissed back at Diante.

"Then what was the point? The point of any of this. Why are we even trying to get back home? I thought you wanted to go back home to your family? What about them, huh? I thought that was the whole point of coming here, in the first place? Or was this all just a big waste of time?"

Blu said nothing back. Instead he stood up so he was about eye level with Diante.

"Okay, I'm in." Blu said after a while.

Diante smiled, Blu did likewise. And they got to work.

After a few minutes, they worked out a plan. Blu could fly. Diante could run. Together, they should be able to move as one.

Blu remembered when he tried this with Jewel, back when he couldn't fly. But things went…. Well, lets not talk of that now. But this time things are different.

Blu would piggyback on Diante, with his wings free, while Diante was able to run around. They tried this on their tree branch and it worked okay.

But the problem was, Blu could only fly so far because of Diante's weight. So they would have to run off their tree branch, jump, Blu would fly them to the next tree branch. And they would repeat.

"You ready?" Diante asked Blu.

"More than I will ever be!"

"Alright, lets do this!"

Diante began to run off the tree branch, he jumped the two flew into the sir and began to fall, but Blu was able to flap his wings enough to keep the two airborne. They landed safe on the next tree branch.

"THAT WAS INSANE! Yes! It is working!" Diante let out a cheer after they landed.

"Come on, we still have work to do. Next tree branch is over there, LETS GO!" Blu cheered as well.

They ran off their branch, jumped, flew towards the next, repeat, run, jump, fly, don't die (very important), land repeat. Run, jump, fly, land, repeat. Run, jump, fly, land repeat….

Before they knew it, they covered at least 50 feet. They left the wolves behind.

"I think we lost them!" Blu said to Diante after they landed on what must have been the twentieth or so tree.

"Yeah, hold on I need to take a breather!" Diante said, they were both exhausted from the run.

After a while, they lowered themselves from the tree branch, onto the ground, so they could start walking.

Diante and Blu were in arms. Blu still needed Diante to walk a little.

"So, where to next, Brother?" Diante asked when they stood up.

"We walk."


	39. Fire

"Nearly there. Almost [grunt] there."

"Almost [heave]…"

"Wait, I hear voices…its them!"

Blue and Diante limped their way towards the rest of the group. They were only separated by a few meters.

Clyde, Julius, and Aberdeen were all visible in the forest beyond. They looked unhappy.

" _I hope they aren't lost. They can be anywhere, you know."_ The voice of Julius pierced through the air.

" _Too bad, I was beginning to like that chap Diante."_ Said Clyde.

" _I feel bad for his family. Blu's family that is. And Diante…"_ Aberdeen said her voice full of sorrow.

" _We know. You loved him. Wish I knew where they were…_

Blu felt now was a perfect time to announce themselves.

"Everyone! We are over here!"

Everybody turned around to see the two birds, arm-in-arm limping towards them.

"By gosh! There they are!" Clyde pointed out. Everybody ran towards the two birds.

Diante let Blu fall to the ground, as he himself fell to his knees. Blu lay on the floor exhausted as the other three swarmed them. Diante couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. A sense of happiness, one he never felt before.

Then the questionnaire began.

"Jesus, you two must've been through hell!"

"Where were you?"

"What happened?"

"Are you guys okay?"

Those questions, and others of that nature, filled the dialogue. Blu and Diante didn't answer, instead they just looked at each other and laughed.

 **Later that day**

Everybody was gathered around a campfire, Blu and Diante were happy. They haven't had food in quite a while. So this was a godsend. Even if the amount happened to be small.

"So," Clyde began the next round of questions, "What happened to the two of you, eh?"

Blu held up his wingtip feather as if to say one moment. He was devouring what little was left of his meal. When he finished, he cleared his throat and spoke.

"We got lost, walked straight into a forest fire. I hurt my leg, and Diante had to help get me around. Then we got stuck in a tree for a day while we were about to be eaten by a few wolves. Nearly starved to death, and then found out we are brothers," Blu finished. Diante nodded his head in agreement.

"So what did you guys do while we were gone?" Diante asked.

Clyde, Aberdeen and Julius looked at each other in awe.

"Nothing important, I guess," Aberdeen said.

"Wait, you said the two of you are brothers? I thought you weren't related at all?" Julius asked.

"We don't know for sure, but it is possible. I mean, after all, in the middle of the forest anything is possible. Right?" Diante said.

"I suppose. Well, for your sake I think we should rest before we continue on. How far do we have to go, Blu?" Clyde asked.

"We should only be…" Blu was about to say it. They were only a few days walking distance from the sanctuary. If he could find Linda and Tulio in Rio, they could get there by tomorrow! After all, they are just outside the city.

"Only a few days! We did it guys!" Blu cheered. Everybody else felt a wave of relief come over them. They aren't too far from their destination.

It felt like yesterday, when Blu and Diante were stuck in that animal shelter in Buenos Aires. But now, look at them.

He could almost see his family. He could almost feel them. It wasn't long until he got back home to Jewel and the triplets. And he couldn't war. Honestly, he felt like he would explode if he didn't get there on time.

Blu turned to Diante, "We made it. Nearly there! This is what we worked so hard for, right?"

Diante said nothing. He just nodded his head, while he continued to look a bit sad.

"What's the matter?" Blu asked him. Diante cracked a smile as he shook his head.

"Nothing, I am alright." Diante said back to him.

"You know I can tell when you're lying, Diante. And I think you are telling a lie right now."

Diante sighed as he gave in to Blu's demands.

"Well, I am scared. I don't know if the tribe will accept me or not. I am nit exactly the lovable type, in case you haven't noticed…"

"Look, don't worry about it. Hey, remember the deal I made to you in Buenos Aires? If you got me back home in one piece I will be there for you!" Blu tried to explain to his friend.

"Can't guarantee that will make a difference. I am happy to help you get back home, but where is my home? Sorry, Blu."

Blu felt a little dejected. Not too hard to understand why, but he understood what Diante was trying to say.

"Well, okay. But remember, I am here for you. You save my life, I will do the same." Blu stood up and walked away, leaving Diante there, alone. He stared at the fire. The orange glow of the flame seemed to contain a warmth in itself.

He remembered the fire. He hated the fire. Every time something happens in his life, it has something to do with a fire. He hates fires. He picks up some dirt, and throws it onto the flame, smothering it.

 _Not today,_ he thought to himself when he went to find a place to sleep


	40. Widow

**How many of you guys listen to Nirvana/ Kurt Cobain?**

 **I don't know why I asked, but I just don't wanna think I'm weird or anything. Let us continue on with the story…**

"Jewel. Its time. Sorry darling, but it has to be done."

Jewel emerged from her hollow, to greet her father outside. The day was cloudy, and it looked as if it might rain. What a coincidence.

Her kids were already there, everybody was waiting for her now. She was dressed in black. Black powder marked her face, a black makeshift hat fashioned out of burnt leaves, it was depressing. And it reflected her perfectly. Lately she had fallen back into her usual habit of crying herself to sleep. Even though it had been well over a month since Blu last disappeared. She had gone sober for a few weeks, but now she had lost it.

But today was the big day. Jewel was officially to become a widow. A ceremony for her had been arranged, and anybody who cared (which happened to be everybody. We are speaking of the chiefs daughter) had attended. Some even went the extra step and brought her flowers and treats to help soothe her.

As much as Jewel didn't want to go, she practically had no choice. It was tribal culture, and that was the way things worked. But it wasn't for that reason alone. Today was already fixing to be cold, rainy, and miserable and she wasn't about to let everyone who attended sit outside there for nothing. That would've been a rather selfish move.

She followed her father through the trees, and eventually they arrived at a clearing. A crowd was gathered there, and they too were all decorated in black.

Jewel made landfall, and her father landed beside her.

"Don't worry, darling. I am always here if you need me. Okay?" Eduardo hugged her.

Jewel nodded. She proceeded to a tombstone the tribe had made for Blu. She felt it. It was cold. It was dead.

She knew Blu wasn't dead. He was there…. Somewhere. He couldn't be. Right? Maybe this was all just a big joke, and Blu would emerge somewhere out of nowhere, and everybody would laugh and have a big feast.

Problem with this is that the joke is rather depressing, not to mention the fact that it has been going on for nearly two months.

The rain started to fall. How coincidental?

Eduardo began the slow process of widowing his daughter. First, he gave a lengthy speech about Blu to the audience, and indirectly to Jewel:

"I am sorry to say that another member of our community has gone missing, and has not been recovered. Two months ago, today, our beloved Blu so tragically fell into the great Amazon. He was never found since…." Is how he began the speech.

The people in the audience were so sad. Sure, some of them hated Blu for scoring that own goal a while back. But most of them loved him for saving the tribe. And even still, whether or not somebody made an accident on a Fútbol field, it is not a good reason for them to drown.

But then came the interesting part. Eduardo listed two people. A victim, and a perpetrator.

Victim: Tyler Blu Gunderson

Perpetrator: Diante

Everybody homed into Eduardo's next message. And he was very clear, and very stern...

"Diante is a killer. He has caused this upon our innocent people! None can forgive him! The fact that he did this-" he points at the crying Jewel, " To my daughter, is reason enough for him to be killed! He is a villain. This bird is traitorous, treacherous, and the worst scoundrel to ever live in this village. Just look at my poor Jewel…."

The crowd looked. Jewel was stopped crying the first time Eduardo turned the attention towards her, and now she was there again, looking sad and miserable. But now there was a new feeling in the crowd. Anger.

They hated Diante. Each and every single bird in that village wants to kill him. They loved Jewel, like how a parent over a child. Or somebody else's child in this case. So when they saw Jewel in this state, and Jewel was never in this state, they wanted to kill whoever did this.

Diante went from an outcast, to public enemy number one, and he wasn't even there to witness it.

Jewel felt bad for Diante. He didn't deserve this. He is a real jerk, but he doesn't need a mob out after him. Not that it would matter anyway. Blu and Diante either are dead, or are still lost in the middle of nowhere.

She visited Maori again, and Maori tried to explain to her what happened. As best as he could. She got the basics of it, they didn't know where Blu was. A forest fire probably fried the both of them. And even if they survived that, what are they gonna do about food? And how will they know where to go without the Humans telling him?

The chance of Blu coming back home must have been less than 1%.

But less than 1% is still a chance, right? A tiny chance. But, it is still there. Anything can happen. Jewel remembered that and regained her posture.

Then she zoned back in to the crowd chanting the words "Bring us justice! Kill Diante!" was this what she had wanted?

The ceremony ended quickly, the rain became too hard for anybody to bear. But the straw that broke the camels back was the crackle of lightning and thunder that they saw and heard in the distance. Lighting strikes were rare, but they weren't unheard of in this part of the forest.

Jewel sulked back home. There she found the things that she currently lived for. The rest of here family. Her three kids, Mimi, Roberto, had all stayed at her hollow to create a big fancy dinner afterwards.

They always managed to put a smile on her face, always. They are family. They are close and they always make her happy. Even in her darkest days.

That's what they are there for, right?


	41. Britain

**When this story is finished, I am seriously considering making a story about Clyde. I pretty much gave up on my other story "The Americans" so I don't think I will continue with that. But if you guys want a origins story centered around Clyde, I think I will write it. Maybe I will do one too for Diante.**

 **This chapter is more so focused around Clyde. Because personally he is my favorite character in this story. I mean come on, he is a orange tabby cats. Cats are awesome. Orange cats remind me of lasagna (insert Garfield quote here) and lasagna is awesome.**

 **Also, AC DC is okay, but I don't think it is as good as Nirvana. Just my two cents.**

 **Moving on…...**

After a good nights sleep, and most of the morning, everybody got up and continued on the way to Rio. It wasn't too far away, and before they knew it they were in the city center. Now for the next task at hand. Trying to find their way to the Spix macaw tribe.

Clyde, Aberdeen, and Julius agreed to help Blu and Diante to get this far. But they weren't so sure about continuing farther beyond. They were exhausted, they wanted to go home. Especially since they had no idea where they were going. They were glad to help their friends now, but now is a different story.

But they realized that they basically had no choice. They didn't necessarily have a home back in Argentina. Clyde and Aberdeen's home was back in England. Julius however, well, he didn't really care whether or not he had a home.

They might as well start a new life, with new friends. And who knows what fate has in store for them? They have been able to get this far, anything could happen.

Well that worked well enough for Aberdeen, but Clyde was a tough cookie.

"Come on Clyde. You have to help us!" Diante said to him, while they were nearby one of the ports in Rio.

"No, okay. When I agreed to help you, we said that we are only going to Rio. Besides, I am not gonna put my life on the line for people I met in a Animal Shelter!"

"But you put your life on the line for us on the journey here! Besides, we have known each other for nearly two months. We aren't strangers anymore, right?"

"No!"

"Come on Clyde! We will get medals for this! The tribe will give us high honor, we will be heroes."

Clyde thought about what Diante said. He did always want a nice trophy to hang up over a fireplace while he sipped some lemon tea and fed himself some biscuits. Until he realized he had no fireplace of the sort. Not in Argentina anyway, back in England, he did.

But is it possible that he could accomplish this here in Brazil? He had thought of moving to America, Canada, or Australia for this. There everybody spoke English and probably wouldn't think of him as a foreigner. But Brazil?

He didn't even understand Spanish enough to live comfortably in Argentina. But Portuguese?

But, maybe he could learn. His old pappy always told him it was a good idea to learn more than just his regular old English. And besides, Aberdeen spoke English and Spanish as good as anybody, and he swore that she sometimes talked about him behind his back in Spanish. Maybe he could get revenge, finally.

"I will think about it…" Clyde said. Truth be told, he already thought about it. And he already made his mind. He was going to move, to Brazil!

"But you owe me a bloody medal!" Clyde said to Diante.

Diante grew a smile on his face, "You wont regret this. I promise. Now lets go get some food, eh old chap?"

"Please, never say that again." Clyde said, annoyed.

"What, you don't like it when I speak like you?"

Clyde rolled his eyes and sighed.

 _Americans. There must be something wrong with them._ Clyde thought to himself as Diante poked fun. He didn't realize that Diante wasn't from America. But he acts just like one. And besides if he is the brother of Blu, who is definitely from America, then that would make him one of them no?

Besides, Diante acted more like an American than Blu did. But Diante swears that he doesn't even know how to spell the name of the country.

Diante and Clyde had been dispatched to the innards of Rio De Janeiro to find some food for the group. This while Aberdeen and Julius went to find a place to sleep, and Blu went to find Linda and Tulio.

So it was just Clyde and Diante. Together. Alone.

It wasn't too bad. Diante and Clyde might have hated each other on paper, but were secretly friends. Not really, if they really hated each other, they would have at it all the time. But they didn't.

They scoured the ports and dockyards for something to eat. Clyde found himself a lot of fish, and he was happy about it. But Diante, and for that matter the rest of the birds, couldn't eat that. They were birds after all, not orange tabby cats from Britain.

Diante only found a few things. A apple here, a orange there, maybe if he was lucky, a Brazil nut. But, he kept envying Clyde who had already eaten to his hearts delight and with enough left over to last the rest of the day.

To Diante, it was unfair. He even thought Clyde was cheating him out of food. Truth is, they are by the docks. And where there are boats, water, and people, there is bound to be fish too!

"Maybe we head for the market," Clyde said to Diante when he saw how fruitless (quite literally) his search was.

"Agreed. Maybe I could finally find something worth eating there."

"Remember, you aren't just looking for food for yourself. We still have three other people to feed." Said Clyde with a grin as he finished off another piece of Tilapia.

"Says the one who has found nothing but food for himself. Literally you have found nothing but fish! Nobody else can eat fish but you!" Diante protested.

"Another reason why cats, are superior to birds." Clyde said with satisfaction. Even delight in having something Diante doesn't.

"Jeez, if I wanted to be a cat I would've had myself born as one. Do think I really have a choice what species I was born into?"

"Nope, but you have the choice not to be such a prick about it." Clyde giggled as he skipped along the sidewalk.

"Whatever," Said Diante rolling his eyes and sighing. The duo changed heading for the inside of the city. Julius and Aberdeen were searching for a place to sleep there, and the marketplace wasn't too far away from where they were.

They crossed streets, narrowly being missed by cars, bikes, motorcycles and whatever else was going along the street. Being stepped on was another issue. But they found a way around that.

"So Clyde, tell me about yourself. Your life I mean." Diante struck up a conversation while he and Clyde were walking about.

"Well… hmmm… were do I begin?" Clyde pondered.

"Start off with your parents?"

"Good idea. I was born to two proud tabby cats, in our little home in Cardiff. We all belonged to a Human, who I think was a British Diplomat. I'm not exactly sure. But when I was a kitten my mum and my pappy loved me like nothing else. Anyway, when I grew up our Human moved to Buenos Aires, but sadly he… he disappeared. My parents passed away of old age and, I guess that's how I ended up here."

"What about Aberdeen?"

"Oh, I met here when I was back home. My Human introduced me to her, and we became best of friends."

"Interesting."

"And you?" Clyde asked.

"Oh me, well… hehe… Um. I don't remember much about my childhood. I was born to the tribe we are heading to but my mother was captured and taken away to be sold, I think. So I lived with my dad for sometime. But when I was older, the Humans came back. And my father was next. I tried to save him, but he was killed. And ever since I have lived on my own. And that's my story."

Clyde didn't say anything. He wasn't exactly sure how to respond. Diante on the other hand was a little nervous. Telling the short story revived old memories of his childhood. And he wanted to forget that.

"But, that's in the past. I doesn't really matter now." Diante reassured Clyde, who hadn't said anything for a while.

"Oh, yes. Well what a coincidence. We are just two people who lost are parents and have been living alone ever since. Well mores for you, I had Aberdeen and Julius to keep me company."

Diante laughed.

"It's a tough life Isn't it?" Diante asked. Clyde nodded in agreement.

They found more food at the market, fruits and vegetables for the birds to eat. Mostly leftovers from whatever the merchants didn't use. They occasionally had to fight a flock of pigeons or seagulls over the refuse, but thanks to Clyde, they won the battle. A treaty was signed between both parties, and for awhile, Clyde and Diante had conquered most of the world. A interesting story.

But that's life, isn't it?

Clyde and Diante returned back to where they last saw Aberdeen and Julius. And they found them waiting. Blu wasn't there.

"Aberdeen, we are back, and we got enough food to hold us until…." Diante began, but didn't finish.

"how much wood could a wood chuck chuck if a wood chuck could chuck wood?" Julius said from behind the group.

"Huh?"

"Oh, that's just Julius. He found a book of tongue twisters on the floor somewhere, and ever since has just been reading one after the next." Aberdeen explained, as Julius pondered the meaning of life.

"Sally sells sea shells by the sea shore. That's a hard one. Sally sells sea shell by the sea shore. Sally sells she shell by the shea shore. Too fast." Julius continued in. Deep in thought. Or whatever one may consider thought.

"Anybody know where Blu is?" Clyde asked.

"He was looking for somebody in the city. I think, Linda and Tulio right? Anyway, he said they could help us get to wherever we need to go." Aberdeen said.

Just then Blu appeared from the tree line. He flew over to the group and landed, careful not to land on his hurt foot.

"Guys, I wasn't able to find them. I guess we will be on our own for now." Blu said after he touched down.

"Well we have been on our own for a couple of months now. What's a few more days?" Clyde said to him.

"Only thing is, I have no idea where we are going! We need another GPS."

Everybody thought about it for a while, save for Julius he was too I to his book. Diane came up with a great idea.

"Hey, why don't we just do what we did in Buenos Aires? Clyde, you can do it again, right?"

Clyde reeled back in agony. He could, but he didn't want to. It was exhausting, and as much as he loved to show off his ninja moves, he just didn't feel up to it.

"Well, maybe. But I don't really feel like it." Clyde protested.

"You never feel like it!"

"Are you doing this just in spite of me?"

Diane put on a offended look on his face. He stepped back a little.

"What, me? What, no. I, I can't believe, (gasp)."

"I can tell by your severe overreaction that you are sincere." Clyde chuckled a bit.

"But, I think that's our only option." Aberdeen said.

"I'll do it."


	42. Bird Girl

[Linda] " So what are we gonna do?"

[Mauri] "I don't know. We only have the slightest clue of where he could be, and if he even is still alive"

[Linda] "You have to give me something. What, am I supposed to go on CNN in a week and tell half the worlds population that their favorite bird is dead."

[Mauri] "You sound stressed."

[Linda] "It's just a lot of pressure, okay?"

[Mauri] "It seems like it would be more than just that."

[Linda] "(sighs) Me and Blu go way back. He was there for me since I was a kid. He has been my best friend. I don't want anything bad to happen to him."

[Mauri] "We will get Blu back. Okay? I promise."

[Linda] "If only it was possible to keep that promise."

[Mauri] "Come to Rio, bring Tulio. He is still in Canada right? And if I am correct you are in Manhattan? Come, we will work this out. Meet me at the Blue bird sanctuary. I will bring some staff."

[Linda] "Good idea. Maybe we could work this out. I will tell Tulio you called."

~beep~

Linda had a week to prepare everything. CNN, FOX, BBC, ABC, PBS, and some news stations she has never heard of have been giving her call after call, email after email, asking for a interview about Blu. She hasn't been on any of those shows in a while, frankly because she had no idea where Blu was. If he was still alive.

It was stressful, it was hard. She went online, brought a ticket to Rio, and packed her stuff. She would be leaving Manhattan in the morning.

Tulio is still in the dark mostly about what is happening. It has been a while since either Linda or Mauri spoken to him, he promised he would be with Linda soon, or at the very least out of Toronto. Now there is a change of plans. They set their courses for Rio, if they were lucky, maybe, just maybe they could find Blu.

Sip some coffee, flip through the newspaper, look out the window at somebody nearly getting hit by a bus, sip coffee, flip newspaper, look outside, sip, flip, look, repeat. That's what Linda was doing, ever since she got off the phone. It was indeed nerve racking to think about everything.

Imagine, the things she would do for a bird. She probably would do crazy things. Probably nothing crazier than anything she has done for Blu before.

She moved from Moose Lake in Minnesota where the sun only a shines a few hours per year, to Rio Brazil where it there is constant heat and samba. Got married to a foreign ornithologist, dressed as a carnival performer, and nearly drove a parade float into a moving aircraft.

Linda felt that her life was exciting, to say the least. And none of it would've been possible if Blu hadn't appeared out of nowhere in front of her home, inside of a box, that day when she was around 9 or 10 years old.

She remembered the old days with Blu. That is, when he was still a baby. He was scared of everything! He was scared of the mailman, the street cleaner, the neighborhood policeman, the ceiling fan, vacuum cleaners, computers, ovens and stoves, pots and pans. And don't even get her started about dogs!

But Blu was so sweet when he was a baby, so happy, excited to play, and when he want playing he was asleep, or with Linda learning how to read.

When Linda was a child, she was determined to teach a animal how to speak. She didn't get that exactly, but she got halfway. Sometimes she wonders what the world is like through the eyes of a animal. Especially Blu.

She remembered bringing Blu to school when he was knee high to a grasshopper. He would sit on her shoulder pretty quietly while the hours ticked by. The school she went to didn't allow dogs, cats, and hamsters. But nowhere in the rule book did it ever say birds. When she found the loophole, she exploited the hell out of it!

She almost thought the principal of the school heaved a sigh of relief when she finally graduated. Blu was at her graduation, prom, and senior trip too. Now that she thought about it, she and Blu have been everywhere together.

She remembered the one time when she was a little kid, there was a massive neighborhood snowball fight. Everybody in town loaded balls and fought a battle of attrition for control of the city, and most importantly bragging rights. She had worn her favorite outfit that day, a pink heavyset coat with sweatpants and boots that reached to her knees. Blu was with her, and Blu made a few balls himself and chucked it at a few other kids. She thought that was normal animal behavior, and she never understood why her parents thought it was strange that she was talking to a bird.

It wasn't until Linda was 16 years old dis her parents realize that not only could you talk to the bird, but Blu could talk back! Her poor father nearly had a stroke when he found out that Blu could write a full sentence as fluent, and if not even more so as any fifth grader.

Because of her relationship with Blu, and that fact that he was always perched on her shoulder no matter where she went, she gained the nickname "Bird Girl" in the neighborhood. Even her closest friends would call her that instead of her real name, and sometimes her own parents would say it.

It became so prevalent as a name, that once she passed through airport security and the agents asked for her alias, she told them "Bird Girl". She was lucky she wasn't arrested on the spot!

Anyways, she missed Blu. And she wanted to do everything, and anything, in her power to bring him back. He was family, and you don't abandon family.


	43. I don't even care

_I'm so happy_

' _Cause today, I found my friends_

 _They're in my head._

 _I'm so ugly_

 _And that's okay, so are you_

 _We broke our mirrors._

 _Sunday morning, is everyday for all I care_

 _And I'm not scared._

 _Light my candles, in a daze_

' _Cause I found god…._

Diante sung while he looked up at the starry night sky of Rio. He was far away from the rest of the group, as he formed a song in his head. It wasn't the worst song he came up with.

 _I'm so lonely_

 _And that's okay, I shaved my head_

 _And I'm not sad._

 _And just maybe, I'm to blame for all I've heard_

 _But I'm not sure._

 _I'm so excited_

 _I can't wait to meet you there_

 _But I don't care…._

"Need to find a verse to end that," he thought in his head. He told everybody else he had gone to use the bathroom. Really he hadn't, he just wanted to be alone for a while. He was nervous as heck, his thoughts were scrambled, and he couldn't seem to get them together.

He was happy.

He was anxious.

He was sad.

He was excited.

Be most of all, he was scared.

Will the tribe accept him? He got a full sense of reassurance from Blu, but will they listen to him? Maybe its been so long that they forgot about everything. Hopefully. Possibly?

Every time he had conflicting emotions, it made him think about another song. By now he probably has enough songs to become a rockstar, a famous one at that. But he didn't care. He just kept them in his head, who knows when he might need to use it?

He didn't really have a good singing voice either. It was mediocre, but he didn't care. He didn't have anybody to sing to, except himself, and he sounded great in his head, so he wasn't sad.

He always thought that if he ever found somebody he fell in love with, he might share a song with her. But he was too scared to do that with Aberdeen. She probably didn't like songs that sounded kinda sad. So he kept them to himself when he was around her. Somebody probably liked it, but he hasn't found them yet, and they will probably never meet.

Diante took a look back on his life, up to this moment. If he wrote a book about himself, it would be great.

The main character, a boy who had his parents killed, betrayed his friends and was isolated for years. Then get lost in the middle of nowhere, with a stranger and some other guys, and the love of his life, nearly betray the stranger, and then realize the two were brothers. That would be a great book. Everybody would probably read it.

Or maybe his life wasn't that interesting, maybe he was just self-centered, stupid, and melancholic. That's what everybody he knows told him his whole life. They were probably right.

But he is who he is, and he can't help be who he is. He didn't care what Roberto, or Jewel, or Eduardo or any of those guys said about him. He didn't know who they are, and they don't know who he is either. They are strangers, they are the aliens that came from mars.

His family was here, the people who accepted him for who he was. Blu, Clyde (despite the occasional feud between them), Julius, and Aberdeen. He loved them, and hopefully, with the teeniest bit of luck, they loved him back.

And if they didn't, who cares? Certainly not him, this wasn't the first time he walked blindfolded into a false sense of security around people, and if this was just that, then it damn sure wouldn't be the last.

But he changed. He wasn't the same bird the tribe knew. There was something new about him, he cared about someone. As much as he hated to say it, he was finally not-alone. He was part of something bigger than himself. A tribe, a clan, a faction. It was their group of five, Aberdeen, Blu, Clyde, Diante, Julius. Their Caravan of Oddballs. And nobody was allowed in, nobody was allowed to leave.

Why? Why is it that he is such close friends with everybody else in the group? Why did it work with them, and not the tribe?

Because after two months of almost dying, day after day, they built a strong bond of trust. And when Diante brought Blu back from the fire, and from being eaten by wolves, that bond was reinforced. They all trusted each other with their lives, they were friends. He never felt that way towards anybody else, nobody.

Now he was just scared that it was all going to come to an end. If Blu gets back home alive, then that means he will be part of the tribe again. And Diante could never be part of them. Not ever. He would lose his own brother, or half brother, whatever it was. He didn't care about being exiled from the tribe, it wouldn't be the first time that happened, he was scared that he would lose a friend.

But Blu probably didn't care about Diante's feelings, he wanted to go home to his real family. And there was nothing Diante could do to stop that. So he just had to bet that Blu was right, he had to take a gamble and hope for the best that Blu, by some miracle, manages to convince the tribe to accept Diante.

He wouldn't be surprised if the tribe has a 500,000,000 dollar reward for his arrest. Or his head. He pissed off quite a few people, but he doesn't care.

Really he didn't, he couldn't force himself to care about people who have pushed him aside for so long. He was sorry about what happened, and he is trying everything he could to make things right again, but he didn't care not one bit about what anybody said or thought about him.

He was far past the age of trying to be socially accepted. That part of him died when he was still a chick and reality hit him like a truck. No, more like a train.

Reality. Did. Not. Care. A damn. About. Diante's. Feelings.

Reality. Is. A. Savage. Beast. That. Destroys. The. Soul. And. All. Feelings.

Reality picked Diante up and did a pro-wrestling move on him. He could almost feel the pain in his back as he lay on the grass.

Diante was never a normal bird. Even when he was a baby. His mother died only a few weeks after he was born. His father when he was only a year old. He barely remembers his father, he doesn't even remember what his mother looked like. He lost his innocence when most other baby birds were beginning to learn how to fly, for crying out loud.

And then the tribe called him, weird. The tribe called him, unforgivable. He wasn't, he couldn't be. It was just that life was so unfair for Diante. Everytime Diante was happy, life beat the ever living soul out of him. And Diante was frankly, tired of being beat down by life all the time. He was finally going to stand tall, take the bull by the horns, and lift it high above his head.

"Diante?"

Diante looked behind him, Blu was there, followed by Aberdeen. They were looking for him.

"Oh, its you guys, come over here." Diante waved the two over to his spot.

"I knew you were lying when you said you went to 'use the bathroom'" Blu said jokingly.

"What are you doing here?" Aberdeen asked.

"Just thinking. Looking at the stars." Diante looked at the sky, Blu and Aberdeen did too.

"They make you wonder, huh?" Blu said, while looking at the universe.

"I'll say." Diante whispered.

Aberdeen looked back at Diante, he was still focused on the sky.

"You have something on your mind? Don't you?"

Diante figured it was time to explain everything that happened to somebody. Why he was the way he was, what went wrong, what he is doing about it, he thought that he should finally trust somebody with this information. After all, he was with the two people he cared of the most and trusted the most.

So he told them, he told them everything. About his life, the tribe, his family, his childhood, his ex-friends, his so-called family. It was such a waste. He told them why he was cast aside, careful not to be too emotional, and try to be as unbiased as possible.

He felt as if a elephant was sitting down on his chest, and had just sat up. Blu and Diante did nothing but listen. It was a interesting tale.

When he was finished, he looked back at the skies.

"Don't worry. We understand you, and your life has been unfair, and I get that. But I promise, we will try everything we can to help you. You don't have to follow me back to the tribe if you don't want." Blu said to him.

"Thanks. Finally I feel happy." Diante whispered the last part.

"Want a hug, to make it feel better?" Aberdeen asked.

Diante nodded his head. Blu joined the hug as well, kinda awkwardly so, but nobody cared. They were friends. They were family.

 **The songs name is "Lithium" by Nirvana. I recommend it.**


	44. The Plan

**Hey everybody, I am so very sorry that I haven't updated in a while. I am not dead or anything. But I have been doing a lot, and I have been on fanfiction too. OrangeMacawWorld and myself have been talking about making a new story (There is no guarantee that it will be an official story. But we are talking about what it might be.) , I am still working on a story for the Starbound universe, and I have another story on the sister network of Fictionpress that I am constantly working away at. So it is a pretty packed schedule, but I have finally found the time for this story and here is the latest chapter. As always review, follow, favorite and enjoy!**

 **P.S. thank you Nightfly for suggestions on the new chapter.**

"Linda, so nice to see you here." Mauri opened the door to the Headquarters of the sanctuary. Linda had traveled all the way from Manhattan here and after getting lost in the jam packed streets of Rio she was glad to have finally arrived at the destination.

"I sure am glad to be here! Where's Tulio?" She asked as she stepped inside. The conference room was a cozy one. A green sofa lied in the back of the room. A glass table stood in the center with smaller chairs circling around it. A TV stood on the opposite wall with a window/wall on the far left. A few other staff members sat around and talked while she walked in.

"Last I heard of him, he departed from Toronto. That was maybe a few hours ago? He should be here any second now," Mauri looked at his wrist watch, "Um, make yourself comfortable. And let me introduce you to our staff." He said walking over to the group.

After getting their attention he began to introduce Linda.

"In case you didn't know, this is Linda," A wave of hello's and how-are-you's emerged from the group, "And Linda this is our team. Meet Mrs. Parker, Mr. Miller, Mr. Blackburn, and Mrs. Hawkins."

They each gave a chin nod or raised their hand in accordance. Linda greeted them and sat down.

"Alright, I think we are just waiting for Tulio but in the meanwhile we can get started. Would anybody like to inform Linda of some of our ideas so far?" Mauri asked around.

"Yes actually. We know that there is a chance that Blu survived the forest fire. But it would still be really hard to detect him in the forest. So we have to rely not only on just ourselves but the people." Mr. Blackburn, a rather tall and skinny fellow with sandy hair said.

"What do you mean, rely on the people?" Linda asked confused.

"We mean social media, Blu is quite famous you know. If people find him they might film him and post it online. We could monitor that but that can only go so far." Mrs. Parker, a chubby lady said.

"Yeah there are a lot of problems with it. Like we don't know where Blu is. Rio is a very big city, you know. Also a social media post could have been filmed days, weeks, or even months before it is posted online. Ask it isn't very accurate." Mr. Blackburn finished.

"Any other options?" Linda asked, she knee that the Social Media option was unreliable as heck. It wouldn't get them anywhere anytime fast.

"We dispatch a team of rangers into the forest and throughout Rio to find him." Mrs. Hawkins said. Adjusting the glasses on her nose, she was, like Mr. Blackburn, a skinny person.

"Problem with that option is that I could be slow. Very, very slow. And the human eye can only see so much. The area affected by the forest fire is very big. And Rio is another situation. If Blu managed to make it to Rio, it would be almost impossible to find him as there are so many hiding spots throughout." Mrs. Hawkins said.

"Not to mention the fact that we also have to pay the Rangers to do this, and the sanctuary doesn't have that kind of money," Mr. Miller added, "All in all, we are at a standstill, Mrs. Monteiro. These are the only two options we could realistically accomplish." He continued, talking to Linda.

"I see. Well-" A knock on the door interrupted Linda when she was speaking. Mauri stood up to go answer the door.

"Tulio! Glad you could make it!" Mauri introduced the newcomer. Tulio walked into the room after shaking Mauri's hand.

"Tulio! I am so happy to see you," Linda stood up to go hug her husband, "How do you feel? Are you okay?"

"I am as okay as I think I will ever be. How are you Linda? I haven't seen you in a while." Tulio said, wining as Linda brushed against one of his injuries. Linda saw this and moved away a little.

"Does it still hurt?" Linda asked him.

"Not too much really."

Mauri introduced Tulio and the team. After everything was settled, they all got back to work again.

"Okay, well there is still one more option that I think we can realistically accomplish. Mauri, do you still have that computer program that allows us to connect and transmit a message to a GPS?" Tulio asked Mauri.

"Well, no. But we could get some of the nerds that hang around in the breakroom to develop something like that. It shouldn't be too hard really." Mauri replied.

"Okay, and how long would it take?"

"A few months. Maybe four weeks in an ideal circumstance." Mauri thought about it.

"Is it possible to cut that time down?"

"Well we could. But that could risk a crapload of bugs and glitches in the software. We could break the GPS we are trying to connect to, and we don't even know Blu has a GPS in the first place! How will we know what to connect to? There are just too many problems with trying to go that option-"

"Hey guys, look at this." Linda said. She pointed towards the TV. A news anchor was talking, and they played a video of security footage inside of a mall. Suddenly, a orange tabby cat came into view, and after a few minutes, snatched a GPS and ran off.

"That has 'Blu' written all over it." Linda thought out loud. The rest of the people agreed with her.

"Somebody pull that video up from online." Mauri said to the group. Mr. Miller was already doing it and had navigated on his computer to Youtube. Everybody gathered around his laptop to see the video. When he found it, he pressed play.

They observed the video of the cat jumping from the roof onto the floor, and 'catnapping' a GPS.

"That's the same cat from last time." Linda noted.

"Can we see what GPS it is? Try zooming in on it." Mrs. Parker asked Mr. Miller.

He zoomed in to the best of his ability on the electronic device. After a quick search on the internet, they found what model GPS it was.

"Looks like we found our GPS. Alright guys, you know what to do. I want to establish communications with it." Tulio said.

"We are coming to get you Blu. You are almost home." Linda whispered under her breath.


	45. Frenemies

**Hello everybody! Sorry, sorry, sorry, and sorry again for the delay. Writers block is a (insert bad-word here). But after going hiking in the Catskills for the weekend I am back home and with a new imagination. I will try my absolute hardest to stay on top of my game this time. So I present to you, the fortieth or so chapter of this story. Enjoy.**

 **Also thanks for almost 100 reviews and nearly 4,000 views. This means a lot to me. You guys are AMAZING! That's amazing with like three z's, Amazzzing. Yes.**

The sun was high, the clouds were few. The day was hot, the breeze was slow. A heatwave struck the city of Rio De Janeiro. People fried eggs on the sidewalk, went for a swim at the beach, ran through sprinklers, and brought loads of water. Lots and lots of water. Something that the Caravan was missing a lot of.

Clyde looked at the half emptied container of water. His body and face was on the grass in shade. It was clear that they could not leave Rio right now. It was far too hot.

Clyde looked up at the sky, as a tear escaped his eye. He was so exhausted, and so thirsty. Not to mention that everybody used him as a pack mule, so he really had the wind knocked out of him. The poor orange cat was told to conserve his water, but he wanted water right now. There wasn't any real place to refill the water, that would risk them getting blasted by the powerful jet of a water sprinkler, or ran over by the excited feet Of the human children.

The beach water was too salty to drink, and who knows how many people whizzed in there. They would probably die from hepatitis even if the water wasn't so salty.

And then there was the vendors who patrolled the streets of the city, like a vigilante police force. They had water at the ready. But sadly, they were animals, and animals don't have any money.

Blu went out to search for water, Clyde, Julius, Aberdeen, and Diante stood behind.

"Hey Clyde, move over here so your shadow can cover us!" Diante called out, he was in a similar position as Clyde. But he was on his back, wings spread out, and exhausted as well.

Clyde rolled his eyes, and with great effort, rolled his body over closer to Diante. He didn't hear Diante ask him to stop, and as he kept rolling over he felt a lump in his back. A lump that appeared to be moving.

He sighed and rolled over again, revealing a crushed Diante on the floor.

"Hey you big, orange, idiot! Watch where you are going!" Diante shook his wing at him. Clyde simply responded by picking him up with his paw and holding him up in the air.

"You know, I am a bit hungry. I wonder how rotisserie-macaw would taste today?" Clyde teased as Diante struggled in his paw.

"Hey, let me go!" Diante tried to kick and scratch, but nothing seemed to phase the tabby cat. Clyde opened his mouth, revealing his sharp and pearly white teeth.

"Clyde! I know it is hot today, but put Diante down!" Aberdeen called out from the distance.

"Aw, I was only going to Gnaw on his big head. Maybe that will get him to shut up, finally." He muttered the last part out to himself.

"Clyde, put him down!" Aberdeen said, more stern this time.

Clyde blew some air out of his mouth, and practically threw Diante away. The poor bird, unable to fly, tried to flutter his wings, but he crashed into the burning hot concrete, landing right next to Clyde in his shadow.

"Jerk. What did you do that for?" Diante demanded.

"Keep talking and I will bite your head off!" Clyde said without even looking down at him.

"Okay, okay, sorry. Sheesh. I hope Blu gets back soon. I won't be able to survive another hour longer with this guy here." Diante sighed.

Blu was flying back to where they were, he searched the entire city, but he found nothing. However as he flew back something struck his eye. The old aviary. The one where Tulio first "Introduced" him to Jewel. Also the place where he was almost clawed to death by another macaw. Maybe Linda and Tulio were still there?

He flew inside through an open window. No Linda, no Tulio, no Fernando. Not even the security guard who usually worked there was there (he sneaked off to his home while his boss was away to watch the football game).

"Hello? Anybody in here? Its me Blu!" He called out, his voice shaking a little. The lights were off and the only light came in through the half closed windows. He went into the room where they keep the birds. Usually a team of scientists came in to feed and take care of them, but luckily for him they were off duty. There were a lot of birds in there, who noticed Blu's presence.

A lot of eyes were on him at once all of the sudden. And he got pretty nervous, he gulped and spoke up. His voice still quivering a little.

"Um, hi. I am Blu." The macaw introduced himself.

"We can see that. What is your name?" All the birds said in unison. They looked at each other in shock of their own harmony.

 _Oh, boy. Not again._

"No, I am Blu."

"Obviously." One bird cried out, "I think this guy is nuts" Another said.

"No, Blu is my name. My name is Blu."

"Well that's a stupid name!" They almost all said.

Blu facepalmed with his talon. He sighed as he spoke to them.

"Have any of you guys seen Linda or Tulio around?" Blu asked them all, to which they just shook their heads.

"Pretty bird, is that you?"

Blu winced at the sound of that name. It was from a voice that was all too familiar. It was as if in that moment, the room grew a lot darker and colder. Blu knew that voice without having to look and see, and frankly he didn't want to see. He turned his head as he cowered in fear, and he saw the evil most vile villain he ever saw in his life.

Who was lumped over in his cage and looked quite sad. He really didn't look that threatening, evil, or diabolical in any way. He just looked rather disturbed and looked more like a lump in the side of his cage rather than the villain he and Jewel knew.

"Nigel?" Blu almost couldn't believe what he was seeing in front of him right now. It was all he could do to stop himself from laughing.

Nigel just looked up at him with kinda tired look in his eyes.

"Yep, it is me, Nigel- what are you laughing about?" Nigel demanded.

Blu didn't realize that he was letting out a few giggles from his beak. He hid his face in his wing as he spoke.

"Well I mean, it is just that you are this big, evil, murder-your-family, kinda villain, but here you are just looking really sad."

He noticed that certain pink tree frog was laughing inside of a glass cage next to Nigel too, she looked familiar. _Where did I see her before?_

"Gabi, STOP LAUGHING AT ME!" Nigel yelled, his sulfur feathers rising on his head.

"I can't help it, he has a point. You aren't exactly the _old_ Nigel." Gabi had great difficulty trying to speak without laughing.

"Um, don't mind if I ask, but who is she?" Blu asked.

"First thing, she isn't poisonous. Second, she is friend of mine-"

"You mean my Husband?"

Nigel sighed as he resided into the corner of his cage.

Blu cringed at the dialogue, "Is that true? I mean that is kinda weird, you are a cockatoo and she is a frog. I knew you are sick and all but, gee whiz. This is another level of weird." Blu exclaimed. Nigel didn't do anything but just sat there and returned to his sad look.

"It pained Blu to see Nigel like this, but what does he care? Nigel tried to kill both him and Jewel, not once but twice. But then again, it did hurt him to see Nigel look so…. Sad.

"Blu, after our previous encounter I was sent here, the humans wanted to research my 'bond' with the frog. But truth be told I could do without her." Nigel whispered that last part to Blu.

"I am so sorry about your situation. But I don't care. Have a nice day!" Blu began to walk away pretty happy.

"No wait! Blu, uh, come back!" Nigel called out frantically, his head sticking between the bars of his iron cage.

Blu tried to pretend like he didn't hear him and he walked faster.

"Please!"

That made Blu stop and look back. The desperation in his voice, the fear in his tone. He couldn't leave Nigel here alone. Well not alone, he had Gabi but he didn't seem so happy about that. But either way, his moral conscious forbade it.

Then all the sudden, that cliché of the angel and demon of his conscious appeared on his little bird shoulders. Two little versions of Blu, one had red feathers, a pitchfork, and a dragon tail instead of the regular macaw tail. The other was white like a dove, had a golden halo around his head, and held a harp.

 _You can't just leave him here. The other birds are here because they are injured and they will be released. But he might stay here indefinitely._ Said the angel.

 _But that jerk tried to kill you, Blu! Not just you, but Jewel, and your children! Yeah, you shouldn't just leave a bird to rot. But he isn't just any bird. He is a monster! He might kick you as soon as you let him out the cage!_ Said the devil.

 _But Blu! We all make mistakes! Imagine yourself in his shoes, he needs your help. He might've changed. He might actually be nice._ The angel made a decisive argument.

 _Here is a deal, you let him out of his cage, and he must swear to you that he will always serve you for practically saving his life. That way, if he breaks his promise you have every right to kill him. And if he really did change, he will be working for you!_ The devil looked up at Blu with a smirk.

The angel put on a look as if he was deep in thought.

 _You know what,_ said the angel, _that's a good idea! I think it would work best for the both of you guys. But please, Blu. Don't do this for personal gain._

 _Yadda, Yadda, Yadda. Personal gain blah blah blah. Listen, you profit, he gets out the cage. Your both happy. End of the story._ The devil said and proofed away.

The angel looked up at Blu.

 _Blu, I hope you do what is best, and for the right reasons._ The angel gave him a funny look.

"Yeah, I know." Blu said, out loud by the way, and the angel disappeared. He looked back at Nigel.

Nigel was a little less excited to go with Blu, considering he just saw him talking to himself. When he realized he was talking to himself, he facepalmed again. It hurt his head a little.

"Alright, Nigel. I will take you with me to the rainforest. But you must do one thing for me," Nigel cringed at what that could be, "You must swear… on your life, that you will not lay a feather on me, or my family, or my friends at all."

"I swear, just get me out of here." Nigel thought swearing on his life wasn't too bad. Besides, he did it before and later on just murdered the other bird later on when they were unsuitable. Maybe he would kill Blu and his family while he was asleep.

Blu unlocked Nigel's cage, and also unlocked Gabi's cage.

"Woah, what are you unlocking her cage for?" Nigel almost backed away in fear.

"Because, you hate her. And I don't like you. Besides, she seems nice enough."

Nigel groaned when the pink tree frog was released from her cage, and she almost instantly attached herself to his head.

"Oooh,Nigel. We are going to go on such a fun adventure! Wait, where exactly are we going again?" Gabi asked, looking at Blu.

"To the Amazon Jungle, where my village is. I got lost a few months ago, and ever since I have been traveling to find my home. You guys will help us right?" That sentence put a weird face on Nigel.

"Who is _us?"_ he asked.

"A few friends of mine."

 **Later that day**

Clyde, Aberdeen, Julius, and Diane all looked at Nigel. He wasn't exactly the _most handsome_ bird ever. He wasn't even close to mediocre. His feathers were missing, he looked like hadn't slept in years, his skin sagged around his face. The cockatoo was old, but also very ugly.

"Great, now we have two useless, flightless birds." Clyde said out loud, stealing a glanced at Diante who in turn just blew a raspberry at him.

"Blu, you said that there were two of then right? Where is the other one?" Aberdeen asked.

Gabi the tree frog, up until now, was clinging behind Nigel's head. She was a bit nervous about meeting new people, especially since the big orange cat looked like it could eat any of them in one bite.

"Um, hi, ah, hello." She said meekly. The caravan stared at her in disbelief. Remember, Gabi looks a lot, almost suspiciously, like a poison dart frog. One touch, and all of them would die a slow and painful death.

"POISON FROG!" Diante couldn't help but scream out loud, it caused everybody else to scatter, except for Blu, Nigel, and Julius.

Julius just stood there looking rather unimpressed.

"You idiots, this isn't a poison dart frog, its your average tree frog. Sometimes I don't know how you guys even know your left from your rights." Julius said rather smug.

"You, of all people, know that this isn't a poison frog." Blu asked, shocked by this sudden change of behavior.

"duh, everybody knows that," Julius said as if it was common knowledge to tell the difference between a very colorful tree frog and a poison dart frog. But that didn't matter anymore. Everybody eventually gathered their whites and came back. They introduced themselves to the new bird and got to know the background between Nigel and Blu.

It left them confused however, why would Blu save the same bird that tried to kill him? Twice? They didn't ask, they just nodded their heads and went with whatever he said.

But Blu forgot one more thing, "Blu, you forgot to bring back water!" Diante exclaimed. Blu remembered what his original objective was, and facepalmed again. It really hurt his head this time, and he feared permanent damage to his brain if he kept at it.

So the caravan, with two shady members added, remained in Rio for the day. Or until the heatwave would blow over. Whichever came first.


	46. At least it's not Detroit

**Hello everyone, Riot here and I am here to tell you guys some information about this chapter. I have actually been working on this chapter for a while now and then I like, kinda forgot about it after a few weeks, and here I am again. I think the last time I updated this was over a month ago, soooo. Sorry. But I am putting this chapter out there, we should snap back to Jewel's perspective and in about seven or eight chapters the book should be done.**

 **Hopefully.**

 **But no matter how bad things get we just realize and uphold in truth, at least it's not Detroit.**

 **P.s. Can somebody explain to me why Fanfiction keeps blocking me from accessing the website? Sometimes it will read an 808 error about 1/50 times I try to access the site. If anybody knows, drop me a line via PM or tell me in the comments. I don't know, I am no computer programmer so if it's my tablet, who knows?**

 **P.P.S Connor (from the original Rio 3) makes a cameo in this. I also would've added Stan Lee but he doesn't pick up his phone anymore and Marvel isn't telling me what's going on. So that sucks.**

 **P.P.P. S, I just went to Detroit, Michigan to visit family. And I have… ehhh… lets just say** _ **varying opinions**_ **about the city. If you happen to be from Detroit, or otherwise try not to take anything I write to heart.**

"Do you really think we can trust those two?"

"Who? Oh, you mean Nigel and Gabi?"

"Yeah."

"I don't know one-hundred percent. But I mean, maybe they changed."

"But, you said it yourself they tried to _kill_ you. Twice! I mean I wouldn't be so gung-ho about just letting them travel with us. They just look crazy."

"People change, and if they are willing to help ,then seven heads are better than five right?"

"Damn it Blu, we don't even have enough food or water for ourselves. But for two extra people?!"

"Look Diante, I know this might've been a bad decision. So I decided that somewhere along the way we will just let them go away. But I just couldn't leave them there you know."

"Yes you could have, Blu!"

"Well maybe I should've left you in Buenos Aires then, huh?"

That hurt Diante. A lot. His eyes looked as if he couldn't believe what he just heard. But he was right.

"Everybody deserves a second chance, right?" Blu said to him.

"I'm sorry. It's just that, your my brother technically. And I don't want to see you get hurt by them." Diante apologized.

"I think you're confusing, brother, and, mother."

The two macaws were in a secluded space of the forest outside Rio, after dusk. Nigel and Gabi stuck with them until they were able to get outside of the city, but ever since they left the city they have been acting weird. They barely spoke unless spoken too (well, that was true for Nigel. Gabi was a chatterbox and spoke about anything for as long as her little lungs could carry her), and hid in the shadows more away from the group. The rest of the group took note.

It wasn't long until Clyde said the words, _those guys are weird lets ditch them,_ that the whole group wanted to get rid of them. They just put up one too many red flags. If they even make Clyde, a confident and deadly tabby cat, feel uneasy, then maybe it was time for a change.

But Blu on the other hand was a big more graceful. If not, even Naïve just a bit. He didn't understand why but he wanted to see Nigel change. Maybe he was actually a good guy under all those layers of evil.

But then again, Blu is making sure that Clyde becomes his watchdog for the night while he sleeps. He doesn't want to take any chances. If he had fingers, a gun under a pillow would suffice. Just in case.

"Look, I don't know what to say. Just… I hope you know what you are doing and that everything turns out okay in the end. Alright man?" Diante put a wing over Blu's shoulder.

"Yeah, and trust me."

"I trust you. I just don't think the decision was right."

"Hey, how come I am the De-facto leader? Why is it that everything I say goes?" Blu had this question on his mind for a while now. Why was it that he appeared to be the one guiding them through the forest.

"Well I mean, it isn't like we chose some great person to lead us. I wouldn't be able to tell you, but my best guess would be because you are honest, smart, and a great friend to have around."

"Ah, I love having people tell me how awesome I am." Blu teased.

Diante smirked, Blu was just Blu honestly. And the group had almost complete faith in him. It was strange how the constant need for survival could transform a group from complete strangers to loyal and unswerving companions to each other in just a span of two and half months.

Two and a half months. It has been that long? Blu hasn't seen himself in a mirror in while, he probably looked really grungy, he hadn't taken a shower since about three weeks ago and might've smelled. But so did all the other group members. It was official, if they ever cross by a river he is going to just take a bath there. No matter what lives inside. As long as it isn't anything that eats birds, he should be okay.

But Jewel, would she still even remember him? And if they did, would things ever be the same? How would they respond to him and his group? Julius and Aberdeen he wasn't too worried about. And it might take them some time to adjust to Clyde, considering he is a cat and all. But isn't Diante some kinda castaway? They wouldn't just simply let him back into the village just because he survived two and half months stranded in the middle of nowhere and managed to travel all the way back home.

But when you put it like that, anything sounds awesome.

The moon was starting to rise as the sun set below the horizon.

He painted the image of Jewel in his head. To remember what he was doing all of this for. Sometimes he wished that he could just turn back the clock. Back at the party just before he got tackled into the Amazon. He wish that he could hug her again, talk to her, even seeing her in real life would be good enough. He had the perfect life, and along came Diante testing everything apart.

It took all his strength to not hate Diante. Everything in his life was going perfectly well until he showed up. But it was easier now. He found something that he was looking for, and that was his family. Sure, he wasn't completely sure if they were actual brothers. But he wants to believe they are. He wants to have his own family, like Jewel has her own. Even if it is just his brother.

And he found some of the greatest friends ever. He was sure that even after they got out of this (if they did at all) they would be the greatest companions until the end of days.

And most importantly of all, he gets to show Roberto who the real bird is. He is never going to finish gloating about he survived almost a fourth of a year inside the jungle. That will make him quit all the holier-than-thou suave dancing and smooth talking he always does.

 _I won't even be graceful about it,_ he thought to himself, _I am just going to roll in there and show that sucker whose boss. Like I am going to rub it in!_

All the more motivation he needs to keep on keeping on.

The night rolled about and the sun finally slept under the horizon. The caravan slept under the blanket of stars and space.

But Gabi and Nigel remained secluded. Gabi was droning on about something Nigel's does not, never has, and never will care about (something about a human named Justin and some beavers or whatever) but Nigel was trying to think to himself. It was about Blu.

 _Blu…why did he save me, after all I've done to him? Why did he give me another chance?_ Nigel figured that the answer lied in how Naïve Blu was. But that couldn't be it. Well it was, but it only answered part of the question. A small part at that. Most of the question still went unanswered. Maybe Blu saw something in him. But what could that be?

All his life, Nigel worked for smugglers, bandits and raiders. Of course he wasn't always like that, he used to be a famous movie star. Until that damn bird Connor (curse that name to death!) came along and stole his shine. But other than his particularly good dance moves and extraordinary singing voice, he couldn't see what would make Blu act so strange. Unless, Nigel was just really that awesome.

 **-The very next day-**

"Rise and shine everybody! What a beautiful day in the middle of nowhere! Today's weather forecast, is rain, thunder, lightning and crippling depression! Be careful where you walk, because if you get caught in a mudpit, you die! On the menu for breakfast today, is nothing! We don't have any!" (Sounds like Detroit in a nutshell) Clyde said like an announcer in cheery tone of voice. It added more sarcasm to the fact that the day sucked. No food, rain pouring by the buckets, mud, thunder & lightning. It was terrible.

"So what do we do now? We won't be able to walk for too long, maybe just past those hills over there and nothing else. Other than that, we will just get caught in the mud!" Aberdeen said after clearing the brain fog and waking up fully until she was alert.

Blu thought about it for a moment, "Can't tell yet. We walk as far as we can and then we-"

"Wait, Blu. What about _them?"_ Clyde interrupted, saying the last words in a hushed voice. He nodded his head towards Nigel and Gabi who hadn't woken up fully yet.

"They stay with us, I guess. They seem cool now."

"Yeah, they do now. But what about later?"

"I-I don't know alright. Give them a chance. Besides, we aren't that far from the sanctuary. We only have about, what? A week left? By that time we should be there, they could do whatever they want, and we will not have to worry about it anymore. Right?"

Clyde resigned himself, "Aye Blu. I hope you know what you are talking about, because I say those chaps over there might mean to kill us!"

"Have faith Clyde, like Blu said, we aren't that far away. We will be done with the situation before we know it. Alright? Anyway, I think we should spend our time trying to make friends rather than be suspicious of every new person we meet." Aberdeen added.

"Priorities, focus on what we need to do everybody! We need food! Any ideas for that?" Diante asked.

"Nothing to do but forage, I guess." Blu replied.

"Forage? In this weather. And if we get lost in the fog?"

"Bad idea, I know-"

"Maybe we could be of some assistance…" The group looked up at them. Nigel and Gabi stood there, the feeling of uneasiness surrounded them, but the group can tell they had the intention to help.

" _You guys_ know how to find food in this weather," Clyde asked not necessarily expecting a response. A smirk grew on the Cockatoos beak.

"We've found food in worst, you _kids_ , don't even know the basics," That made everyone stop and look for a moment, "We'll catch the best damned meal you've had in weeks!"

Everybody seemed happy at this plan. If they succeeded they would get food. If they failed and died, or vanished, they wouldn't have to carry around as much of a burden. Sure that sounds a bit morbid, but it didn't deny the fact that it was true.

"Are you guys sure? I mean, the weather is hell today! And you could get lost, or struck by lightning, or eaten, or stuck in a mudpit," Blu kept listing all the things that could kill them on his talons. When he realized that wasn't helping he stopped.

"Look, we have been surviving on our own for years! We can do it now," Said Gabi confidently.

"Well back then we did have Charlie…" Nigel said to her in a whisper.

"Well Charlie wasn't much of a help,"

"I wouldn't say that."

"Look! The point is, we can do it! Just trust us, give us some time! And we will have breakfast served." Gabi said with confidence as she hopped on Nigel's shoulder. Nigel puffed with confidence too.

"Okay, you're in. See you later," Said Diante. That killed their ego. They were hoping for some kind of inspiring thank you or round of applause. Even crying as their saviors swooped in the deliver them from suffering. But all they got was an ' _Okay see you later'._

Ouch.

"Wait that's it?" Nigel puffed arrogantly.

"Umm, yeah. That's it, we didn't forget anything did we?" Julius asked, he started to panic thinking he forgot something, "Oh no! I left something behind! I have to find… whatever it is I am looking for!" Julius was about to run off on his great trek when Aberdeen's wing stopped him.

"That's all. Goodbye, good luck. I guess that it." Aberdeen said to the two.

"What?! No thank you, no boot licking?! How ungrateful! No tears of happiness?!" Shouted Gabi (Nigel's arrogance was starting to rub off on her).

"That wasn't specifically stated in our contract, so no," Clyde said, the flavor of sarcasm in his voice that he used earlier sounding again.

"But we are practically saving your life! Shouldn't we get a thank you at the least?"

"I specifically remember you asking us to go a risk you life, to which we said ' _you're in. See you later'_ I don't see what the big deal is." Blu knew Nigel was a bit strange. But he didn't know he was this arrogant. Whatever.

Nigel and Gabi heaved a sigh and wandered off in some random direction.. The group watched as they disappeared into the jungle.

"They seem nice!" Julius said happily. Diante snorted when he let out a chuckle.

"I've seen alligators nicer than those two."

Julius' eyes filled with wonder at the mention of a friendly alligator, "Really! Ooh, can I meet them?!"

Taking care of Julius was like taking care of a child. Diante just let out a sigh.

"Sure."

Julius couldn't contain his excitement and started to bounce around, he wasn't going to stop nagging Diante about this.

 **Pffffffffffff. Yeah its been months since I've uploaded. Sorry but laziness so, meh.**


	47. Connection

Jewel was a really nice person. So nice in fact that for a majority of her life helping and caring for other people. She had an extremely big heart, even if it took a while to understand that fully. Whether it was helping her father recover from the death of his wife, or just doing basic tasks for the other village people, she did it with a smile on her face.

But now, this was just something she couldn't handle. If the Humans were right Blu should've been here by now. It was utterly heartbreaking, but she felt herself slowly losing…

Losing what?

Faith, hope, hope that Blu was going to return back home. Faith that he was at the very least still alive. It was all that kept her belief in Blu still intact. But it has been nearly two months now. If not over that. Nobody has survived beyond the Badlands territory for even a week. Anybody who was missing was pronounced dead after one months clocked in.

Of course, Eduardo gave this missing person extra time. Because, well, that was his own son-in-law.

Now all Jewel could produce is a sigh whenever she thought about Blu. All the nice memories that she had with him. She was sorry to say this now but that really was all he was right now, just memories. Of course, those were memories she would never _ever_ forget.

But she was a really strong person, and she has gotten over it. She resumed life as the happy-go-lucky person the tribe has known her to be. This is especially important because her children still need their mom.

They have also been incredibly sad. No one has told them, but Jewel has pretty much figured that they knew what she knew. She just couldn't see them so sad. So for them, she would have to step up her game.

It shocked almost the entire village to see how resilient Jewel was. Some even copied her as a example to get over their own bouts of sadness or depression.

But Jewel was still vulnerable. During the nights, when there was absolutely nothing to do, when the kids were asleep, and she was truly by herself, she couldn't help but think about him. And it would cause a tear or two to fall out of her eye.

She adopted the motto 'Happy on the outside, happy on the inside!' and she was happy. Just not as happy as when she was with Blu. The realization of that fact is what made her sad. She longed for that happiness that only her goofy klutz of a husband could provide. Whether it was him being a total goofball, him making those same stupid mistakes that only-Blu-could-possibly-make, or just being there for her whenever she fell down. Blu made her happy.

"Poor girl. She doesn't deserve this."

"You know what they say. Bad things happen to good people."

"I wish it didn't."

"Well, I think there is a reason behind it. Like, maybe it is to prove how good of a person you really are. You know?"

"When we were kids, Jewel was the most innocent, happy person I have ever met. And she still is. I wish Blu was here for her sake."

"I don't really know Jewel personally. But I can sense that she is strong, you know that Roberto."

"Of course. And sorry, for me being a total jackass and everything when we were searching for Blu."

"You are apologizing to me? Little ol' me? I should apologize to you! I know realize what you were trying to say all along and I feel so… so stupid and naïve. You understand what I am saying?"

"Jackson, there was nothing wrong with having a little hope. It may have been far fetched but, it was all in good intentions. And that is what matters right?"

"I guess so."

"So what do we do now?"

"Live life like normal, I guess that is all we _can_ do."

Jackson and Roberto talked to each other after Jewel departed them.

Jewel herself went to her own nest. The sun had set far down past the horizon. And a big white moon filled the sky, she couldn't help but look at the natural wonder of the sky. The man on the moon seemed to have a smile on his face tonight. Jewel giggled to herself.

 _Imagine a human going to the moon. How silly, that's impossible!_ Jewel said in her own bird ignorance.

She came back home to Bia, Tiago, and Carla all asleep. Bundled under the leaves that served as blankets. Fast asleep, off in dreamland.

Jewel, no sooner, founder herself booked on a round trip to Dreamland. A year round resort, open to only her and the people who inhabit her imagination.

She loved to dream, when she had dreams she was the ultimate creator and she could write and create her own story. She could snap out of the stress of reality and dive into pure joy. Of course, dreams didn't come to her every night, but when they did they were welcome.

Tonight she had a dream.

She woke up, in a field. A stream cut through the field. The sun was shining bright. White puffy clods in the sky. A lapis blue sky. Hills surrounded the area. In the far horizon was a human settlement with skyscrapers and other human stuff. Behind her was a forest, of untold depths. She looked around and on the opposing side of the river sat Blu.

Blu seemed to be looking around his area as well. Trying to take in the sight. Jewel didn't want to call his name. She wanted to make sure this was real…

Blu's eyes landed on her. They both made eye contact and just stood where they were for a while. Then like madmen, they ran towards each other. Blu calling her name, Jewel calling his.

They were about to go in for an embrace, when they both ran into a glass wall. After landing backwards from the shock (they ran into it quite hard) they were able to understand what happened. They both pressed themselves against the glass. Jewel could feel the warmth of their bodies through the glass. And it was enough.

"Jewel…"

"Blu…"

"I am going to find my way to you. Okay, I-I promise! Don't go!"

"I would never!"

They stood there next to the glass wall, sometimes sitting down. They spoke to each other of all the things that happened. To Jewel's relief Blu said he was fine. And in fact he was with a lot of his friends that agreed to help him. Jewel told him all the events that happened in the tribe, and Blu didn't look too surprised.

They were both just so happy to even see each other. To acknowledge that they both existed. Jewel knew that this wasn't real. But she knew that Blu was real. She knew that Blu was having this dream at the same time she was having it. Jet was like they were both really there. And they were.

At the same time Jewel had this dream, Blu was asleep having the same exact dream. They were sharing dreams, even though they were worlds away.

That's what love does to people, despite being so far away, they were so connected.

They were still in love.

No matter what.


	48. Detective

**Ace Combat reference coming…**

" _Hey buddy. You still alive?"_

The device rang in his wings.

The GPS displayed the message. A simple line, Blu could tell it came only from one person. Only one person could think of typing a sentence like that.

" _Tulio."_

" _In the flesh. Is everything okay?"_

" _Fine."_

" _Good. Sending you directions to head towards. Follow these instructions…"_

The barrage of messages came upon the GPS and Blu adjusted the route accordingly. Say no more to navigating by starlight!

The GPS Clyde picked out was much like the old one. Hopefully this had a longer battery life. Either way, it would work temporarily and allow them to make contact with Tulio and Linda.

Blu could already imagine the field day the two of them were having. A party was probably being held right this minute, cake, confetti, those stupid party hats and kazoos people always have.

"That was the humans?" asked Clyde. Blu gave a nod of the head. The rest of the group practically cheered in happiness.

Speaking of the rest of the group, Nigel and Gabi really came through for them. And because they managed to get food for everyone they were both well respected. Even if Gabi's chattering annoyed them slightly. But they would put up with it. For now.

And Nigel really did seem to change. He laughed with the rest of the group, he sung songs with them, and was not the bird that Blu knew when they met first in Rio. He was actually friendly. Of course his relationship with Gabi was still very, very, weird. But he guessed everyone has their own… eh,

Quirks? Yeah, that's a good word. Quirks.

No matter. Nigel and Gabi were officially part of the gang. And with that they had even more heads to think.

It seemed everybody was finally starting to get along, and everything was starting to fall into place. Diante and Aberdeen were now officially probably going to get hitched together one day or another, Blu could have only been a week or so away from home, and now the GPS is back online.

It is usually at this point when something horribly wrong happens and all the good things are reversed. But so far, it hasn't happened yet.

Yet.

And that dream Blu had last night. Could it have been that Jewel had the very same dream? That they possibly were in each others dreamland? She seemed so… real. So amazingly real that he almost believed the dream itself was real. But that wood have been ridiculous.

Only time would tell.

 **Oh no! Point of view change in the middle of the chapter, ooooof!**

 _Toronto, Canada_

Officer Raleigh walked into the Police headquarters. Something didn't add up. Something was just too suspicious about the whole incident.

This wasn't the first time a rouge officer beat the ever living soul out of another innocent pedestrian. In fact attacks like these were becoming more and more frequent. And they all had something in common. Each of the victims were working for various rich corporations or organizations throughout Canada and the United States. Each of these corporations made donations to the Police Department. These donations wouldn't be suspicious on their own, if it hadn't came from all the same companies in which their personnel were beaten by an unidentified officer.

Raleigh wasn't the only one to realize this. He put the papers on the table in his little battalion of co-workers. There were at least ten of them in that little room.

A single light illuminated the entire room, which was enough considering how small it was. It smelled of cigarette smoke and coffee. The auxiliary break room was transformed into a special committee room by any officers who happened to join Raleigh on his little crusade.

A window behind them illuminated the Toronto skyline, the CN Tower spiraling above them. Stretching into the royal blue Canadian sky.

"What do you think of this, eh Raleigh?" Detective Custer put some more papers down on the little table as they discussed the evidence.

Looks like some more information about these 'donations' these companies were making.

"I ought to think that this is alot more than just a case of some rogue officer," Said Raleigh as he adjusted his uniform while standing up straight.

"Are you thinking what I am," Custer asked.

"I don't know if it is that serious. I mean, I don't want to jump into any hasty decision, not yet anyways."

Custer nodded his head, "Aye sir. But I don't think it is out of the question."

"I doubt it is either, Custer. In fact I find it highly believable. But to make an assumption like this would mean a Citywide- no- Nationwide panic. The media would be all over it. You know how big something like this is, eh Detective?"

"I fear that it is larger than we would imagine."

"Boys," Their commanding officer walked in this room. All the others snapped at attention.

"I had a look at your papers," Said the rather grizzly man when he addressed the police in the room.

"Oh don't worry about us, sir. We are just ready to do our part for Queen and country!" Custer said as the Commander walked inside.

"What have ye lads found so far? It had better be good, or I'll be sacking all of ye for ruinin' 'm break room."

"Take a look at this 'ere sir." Another police officer, Matkovic, gave a written statement to him.

The commander put on a rather baffled face. But he nodded his head and closed the papers in understanding.

"We would request to have an interview with a Evan head of the endangered wildlife fund protection here in Toronto. And also these other people are of high importance too, we would like to have a word with them too." Raleigh asked.

The commander shook his head, "I fail to see any good comin' out of this here. I think ye boys are barkin' up the wrong tree."

"Just a few hours is all we ask, maybe we could make something out of all of this mayhem finally."

This Commander sighed, turning his back. He had a look of severe disturbance. Something must have been really wrong that he wasn't telling them.

"You lads are dedicated, I'll give ya that much. Fine, take your silly investigation. Just know that I had nothin' to do with it. If this backfires, the weight of the world will be on your shoulders."

He shoved the papers back in Matkovic's hands. And left the room.

"He sure is acting hella suspicious, if you ask me," Said Custer.

"Agreed. Lets not forget that if what we are thinking is really happening is really true then members of our own Police Department will be in on the scandal too." Raleigh replied.

"Of course. How big do you think this corruption scandal will be?"

"International!" Said Matkovic, the Senior Lieutenant in the room, "I swear on god that this will be. No lie. These companies have branches in Australia, Brazil, Germany, Poland, America, and even the Queens land itself! Bloody greedy robber barons. Damn them all to hell!"

"Now Matkovic, let's not jump to anything hasty. Lets just take this one step at a time, you heard what Buster said," Custer tried to calm Matkovic down. Buster was the Commanding officer who left the room, remember that Now.

"He's a Scotsman. And what the hell does a Scot know about Canada? While them boys over there were singing with bagpipes and skirts, we were trekking the Yukon and fighting a World War."

"Enough Matkovic! I will not allow you to continue on like this. I will have you know I am Scottish as well! You are to keep your mouth shut. Understood?" Raleigh snapped.

Matkovic resigned to the far corner of the room, "Aye sir. But if it were up to me them damn Robber Barons would have long been stowed away."

"Unfortunately for you, it isn't up to you."

Matkovic sighed and went away.

"Now lets get some real work done." Custer looked at Raleigh when Matkovic left. Raleigh nodded his head.


	49. We made it?

**Putting a warning in this chapter, there might be a cheesy romantic love scene in this one that involves a instance of singing. I hate cheesy song lyrics inserted into text, but sometimes my heart doesn't always agree with my brain and does dumb stuff like this. Either way it will probably be only like a line or so of lyrics from some pop artist that lost fame in the 2010's or so. And no it isn't Psy. Gangnam style will live forever in my 10-year old heart.**

 **(I miss 2012-2014! I wanna be a kid again!)**

 **Also Pableroski. These things are delicate procedures, it takes time to make art. I might not be making the Mona Lisa, but I am doing the best I can. I promise you, I want to hurry up and finish this story waaay more than you do. Okay? I want to continue on something else. But this is** _ **so far**_ **my best story. I am taking it slow. Cool?**

 **Also we almost have 5k views. Over 100 reviews, 10 favorites (or follows I can't tell since I'm writing on Microsoft word) you guys are actually epic. Little Ole me has the greatest people in the world reading his crappy stories.**

 **Song links will be posted at the end and without further delay, we have the next chapter.**

They were almost there. Almost. The GPS rung in and told them so. And, by the grace of some unseen power, they really were. They were almost home.

Home at least for Diante and Blu. A new adventure entirely for Clyde, Aberdeen and Julius. Although Julius could care less about where he was. Home is where the heart is, and considering that the three of them don't even know what the place looks like, they had absolutely no heart there.

That worried both Blu and Diante. But Blu wasn't focused on what they would do after. They could stay or make the long trek back to Buenos Aires. Maybe Linda would gracious enough to give them a ride? It was Diante who worried the most, not so much about Clyde and Julius but about Aberdeen and himself.

His own selfish desire to have Aberdeen there with him brushed off almost all advanced thought process's. What if Aberdeen had a family and home in Argentina? What if she had friends who worried about her over there? These questions didn't occur to Diante when he thought about the idea of her staying, he only thought that the only reason she might leave is because she wanted to simply go back home. Which is natural. In that case, Diante would be ready to make the trip back to Buenos Aires with her, as soon as his wing heals of course.

But then again, what would be the point of going all this way back to the tribe, if he was just going to leave again? And then he remembered, it was to help Blu get back home. He couldn't leave his only family member behind. Or at least, as far as the both the both of them knew, the only living member. And he still had things to make-up for and to apologize for. He needed to right each and every single one of his wrongs.

But he wanted to be with Aberdeen. He wanted to ask her, but was scared she would thing he was too clingy or possessive.

In reality, Aberdeen, Clyde, Julius again had nothing in Buenos Aires. The only real true friends they had were each other. Sure some people might miss them, but they would get over it. Aberdeen had every intention of staying out here with her boyfriend, as long as it takes.

But another problem. What about Diante and the tribe. Diante made a mental note to stay clear from Jewel, she would probably be so infuriated that she would at least attempt to murder him. And the tribe probably hates him. Not only was Blu a husband, father and son-in-law of the chief he was also a hero. Saving the macaw territory from Human conquistadors and utter destruction, with the help of a few rouge humans themselves. _Thanks Linda_.

So Diante figured that the tribe would be pretty pissed off either way , he would rather deal with the tribe than Jewel however. The tribe might throw him in a cage or exile him, but Jewel might actually kill him. Now that he weighed the odds, he might as well just hand himself over to the Tribal guards and sentries.

Nigel and Gabi stopped. They didn't want to continue on any further, and they wanted to go their own ways. After many thank-you's, Stay-safe's, and have-luck's, Nigel and Gabi departed into the forest.

Nigel and Gabi eventually split up and went different directions too, so that was the end of one, very, very strange relationship. Good riddance.

Diante, after saying goodbye to them was caught up in his own thoughts. He was so caught up, that he didn't see Aberdeen eyeing him. She was observing his face.

There was no question that Aberdeen and Diante loved each other, they hadn't necessarily announced that but even Julius figured that (then again, he was the one who managed to tell the difference between a poison dart frog and you average tree frog stating that it is common knowledge, he is just a weird cookie isn't he?). Aberdeen had a gigantic heart for other people. She could sympathize with them, red expressions and emotions, you know cheesy stuff like that.

So when she saw the look on Diante's face, she knew something was wrong. Really wrong. Now Aberdeen knew that Diante wasn't exactly the most popular person in the tribe, and figured he may be an outcast (which he was) but he still should've been excited to go home. Right?

Home is home, no matter she you are or where you come from. If a prisoners home is in a cell then that's what their home is. That's where the heart is.

So how come Diante looked not as excited as he should've been when Blu announced that they should've been there tomorrow? If anything, he became even more reserved than usual. Which is saying a lot since Diante is the most reserved person she knew.

Her answer wouldn't come until later that night. The caravan stopped, Clyde would've been jumping for joy if his feet didn't hurt so much from all the trekking and heavy lifting. Being the resident pack mule sucked sometimes.

They made a campfire, careful not to burn down the entire forest, and they found shelter in nearby holes inside of trees. The moon was high that night, the stars spreading out like hundreds of thousands of polka-dots stretching across the dark indigo sky.

Everybody was asleep? Except for two souls. The first one, Diante, was up because he was thinking about his problems and dilemma. The second, Aberdeen, was silently observing the first.

It was after a few minutes, Aberdeen went over to him.

"Hey, Diante," Aberdeen said when she scooted over to him.

"Oh, you're up late," Diante said, looking at her.

"You too you know," Diante shrugged his shoulders at her statement, "What's the matter Diante?"

"Nothings the matter. I just-hey don't look at me like that!" Aberdeen was looking at Diante with a look of distrust. Both of them knew that was a lie.

"Diante, I know you. You have a certain heavy look on your face like something is bothering you. Just tell me, I will still love you all the same."

"It isn't as simple as that."

"Remember when we first admitted we loved each other and you were talking to me about the past and all?"

"You still remember?"

"Of course I do. But, if it was easy to open up then, how come it isn't now. I never told anyone."

"You telling everybody about my secrets isn't what I am worried about, I could care less if everybody in the world knew who I was."

"So you admit that something is wrong?"

"Yes-I mean, no! But yes. Yes but actually no…. Look I don't know!"

Aberdeen put a wing around Diante, pulling him close to her and herself close to him. They could feel each others body warmth, and they didn't want to leave from the half-embrace.

A breeze picked up, and the fire suddenly died.

The warmth of the fire was gone and the only warmth left was that of each other. They both leaned in closer.

"Say what you want to say

And let the words fall out

Because honestly

I wanna see you be brave"

"I didn't know you could sing."

"I never told anyone, anyone except you."

"Fine. You see back when I was a kid I have a fond memory of seeing Blu fall out of our nest and getting captured by humans. My mother died before either of us hatched from our egg and so it was our dad who raised us. But after Blu disappeared it was just me and him. We were made outcasts, I don't know why, dad never told me. So we always lived on the fringes of the village. I still managed to make a few friends, Jewel, Roberto, I even became close with their parents and the village chief." Diante paused for a moment.

"Go on. I'm listening, I promise."

Diante nodded his head, "Life was great. It was just me and my dad and my friends. But then _they_ came."

"Who is _they_."

"They were humans, I think Blu calls these kind poachers. They came again. And they killed and burned down the entire village. I remember my dad, he was lying on the ground covered in blood and dying. I-I started to… t-to cry. And my friends were stuck in a cage. I could have saved them b-but I-I didn't!" Diante broke into tears and Aberdeen hugged him all the closer with both wings. Their bodies pressed together.

Aberdeen planted a kiss on Diante's face she patted his head and back letting Diante sob. Diante put his head on her shoulders.

"Its okay. Don't worry, I'm here. I will never leave." Aberdeen comforted him.

Diante eventually stopped crying, he hadn't cried since his dad died much less this hard. He felt embarrassed in front of Aberdeen. To show the more vulnerable side of himself. But he would never, _ever,_ do that in front of anybody else. No matter how emotional the situation, or how much they begged. He wouldn't cry, unless Aberdeen was the only one there.

But he could tell Aberdeen didn't care, and if not loved him even more so. Diante stopped his sniffling a while now, but she still was there doing all the same things she did. His head rested on her shoulder, and both her wings were wrapped around him, one of them slowly and carefully rubbing over his back.

"You can stop if you want. I don't have anything else left inside me to cry."

"I can tell you haven't cried in a long while."

"You'd be right."

"Does it feel nice?" Diante nodded his head, "Then you can stay as long as you want. And I will stay here. Right next to you."

Another long silence.

"Your singing voice. It's, fantastic. How come you don't do that more often?"

Aberdeen blushed, "Thank you. But I just don't know if others will like it. I was waiting until i could found the right person to sing to, and I thought it was you."

That's the same thing Diante told himself about his own singing voice.

"You know, I like to sing too. I think I'm as song bird," Diante said, lifting himself up. Maybe now was the time?

"I would love to hear it. Go ahead, give my your best one."

Diante cleared his throat as he thought of one of the many, many songs stacked in his head. Too many to choose from, he will just go with whatever he liked the best.

"They came along

And washed my soul so easy.

High above myself, but I could hear them anyway.

The wind has taken them away so feathery

Showed them all the places they could reach.

And it's not too far, for them to go and leave

Me all alone like there's no guarantee for such a dream.

And they bequeath me a black feather on the way

And I say, 'yes I am a dreamer, and these feathers they won't stay'.

And I will try

Try to hold you.

With my arms, wrapped 'round your heart.

Even though, this love is gonna kill me.

I will try,

Try-try

And I will try

Try to hold you

With my arms, wrapped 'round your heart.

Even though, this love's gonna kill me

I will try.

Try-y."

Diante looked up at Aberdeen, quite nervously. He had never, ever, shown off his real talent in front of anyone. So her judgment right here and right now meant everything.

"So, um, how-how did you like it?"

"It was beautiful Diante. Why haven't you ever showed your talent to anyone?"

"Same reason as you I guess. I just don't wanna show anybody I don't trust."

"Well you trust your brother don't you? I've never seen you sing in front of him."

"Now see, that's a different story. Blu is Blu. You are you. I wouldn't kiss Blu, ever. Because the thought of kissing him, would make any girl I know throw up. The nerd."

Aberdeen giggled at Diante's witty statement, "Now that isn't nice. You shouldn't talk about your own brother like that."

"He probably does it to me. And I don't care if he does."

"Would you kiss me though?"

"Sure-"

"Mouth to mouth?"

"Let me show you," Diante pushed his head forward, Aberdeen did hers and they both closed their eyes as they leaned in for the longest kiss either of them shared.

 **Until the very next day (bump-a-dump-da-ba-dum-ban-dump)**

 **(I am sneaking references to other things all over this aren't I? In case you didn't know, that is a reference to the duck song. God I miss 2012-2014. I think I'm gonna cry)**

They woke up, ate, got the GPS in order, and walked again. This was the final proving. The long stretch. Everybody was excited. Two months, has brought them all the way here.

It was the final countdown now. There could've only been about a mile left. Blu felt faint when he thought about his kids. Those three balls of pure joy that gave his life meaning. To be a father. And his wife, who was far more beautiful than any girl he had ever laid eyes on. He was about to delve back into this world. For the first in a very long time.

He only had one thing on his mind, and so too did everyone else. Nobody said a word. Diante and Aberdeen occasionally sheared glances and blushed when they remembered the night before. Like something out of a romantic book, as they realized, had occurred under that blanket of stars. And they formed a even more special connection than ever.

Clyde looked up at the tree tops, observing them. They were far more different than from the trees in Argentina. The air was different. The sky was different. The dirt was and so too was the atmosphere. Instead of traveling to a different country, he found himself on a different planet. And he didn't need NASA to do that.

"pinch me," Was Clyde's way of saying 'pinch me so I know I'm not dreaming'. Julius obliged happily, with a peck to Clyde's sore back.

"Ow! You stupid bird!" Clyde yelled in a fit of pain and anger.

"But you asked me! You asked me!" Julius yelled back running towards Aberdeen and Diante. He ran into Aberdeen, who snatched him up in a embrace with her wings kind of in a protective state.

"Clyde!" He stopped in his tracks. If his half-sister wasn't always there to make sure he behaved, he probably would've killed Julius by now. He sighed and kept pace with the rest of the group.

"Julius, remember what I told you about when people say things they don't really mean. This is what I meant."

"Oh," said Julius simply as Aberdeen explained it to him.

They kept walking on, and both Blu and Diane knew they were here. The area looked familiar. They must've been in the highlands, entering the macaw territory. Hills and cliffs were rampant in this area. It wouldn't be long until the area leveled out into the flatland and flood plains of the great Amazon river. This whole area looked far too familiar.

Tulio's directions brought them close to one of the tributaries of the Amazon River. And the whole area looked as if they were there before. They reached a little opening by the river where a little of the river overlapped into the ground, cat tails and reeds grew in the water and ground mixture. A small stretch of sand covered the area, and lines ran deep in them as if there was a struggle in them. Diante stopped in his tracks.

"What's the matter?" Blu asked.

"Remember when I dragged you from the river when we first go lost. And when I took you onto fresh land?"

"Yeah."

"This is the place…"

Blu looked around, feeling and finally understanding why the place was so familiar. He checked the GPS.

"We only had to walk for about five kilometers, and we would've been back in the tribe." Blu said to him.

"Really?"

Blu nodded his head. They both started to laugh, laugh at their own pain. Everybody else was rather lost. But they brushed it off.

After a very long stretch Blu and Diante looked around and recognized the macaw territory. They passed by the marshland, and entered into the spix macaw region. The village was quiet. Nobody was outside like usual. But the group didn't care. They high fived each other and cheered and let out screams and tears of joy.

"We made it! We finally made it!" Blu cried out.

"Look, look, over here is that old birds nest. Man he was weird but he was a legend. And over there is where the village always gathers round for a giant feast. And this whole place, I mean…" Blu was going mental.

Diante let out a chuckle, and everybody else practically collapsed on the floor from exhaustion.

"Wait. Where is everyone?" Clyde asked. Everybody looked at Blu and Diante. Almost as if on cue, and black shadow approached, a sharpened stick in its grasp.

Many of these shadowy figures approached them, and everybody stood up banding together as if they were ready for a fight.

A net was thrown on top o them, and no matter how much they struggled they couldn't get out.

Some of the shadowy figures climbed on top of them spears pointed at the Caravans necks, "aw cheese and sprinkles. Fine we surrender. Just don't kill us alright?" Blu surrendered and spoke for his group.

"Hey," said one of the dark figures, "I recognize this voice, this weak scrawny voice…"

The figure took off some leaves it was wearing for cover to get a better look at their captives.

"Eduardo…"

"Blu!"

 **Song links:**

 **Feathery, by Milky Chance (Really cool song, you can look it up on Youtube)**

 **Brave, by Sara Bareilles (same as above)**


	50. Fifty

**HOLY SMOKES! Digital Riot is posting a NEW CHAPTER! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAA-**

 **Contain your excitement Jimmy. That's right, the long and awaited 50th chapter of my Rio 3 Remastered story. Now I know what you are thinking, _'Riot, where were you. I spent the last Five months on edge with nail-biting anxiety because you left us off at the best moment!'_ Like I said Jimmy, curb your anger. **

**So here is my excuse, I became a Weaboo! Yay! For anybody who does follows me on Fanfiction you will know that I have made a story named Gate- The Iscariot Kingdom, and I have been working on that. Gate is a very weird anime, and I loved it because I'm me and that's how I roll, so I have been working on that story and it's a very major story too. So if you'd like you can check it out on my profile, _totally not shameless self advertising_.**

 **I know, I know, I know… Its been months. I am so sorry. But life, and writers block is a (*insert unsavory swear word here). Honestly its been rough trying to write this out for the past couple of months. So I made sure I put as much effort and detail into it as humanly possible.**

 **With that out of the way, I am making this the 50th chapter of this long, long story. And it's a good story, I think, and if we finish it properly we can make it something memorable. So without further ado here is the 50th (that's right 50th) chapter of Rio 3: remastered. And above all else, I hope sincerely that you enjoy this final chapter (because I have worked too hard on it for it to be bad). Enjoy.**

Silence in the Amazon jungle. Not a single bird chirped in the Blue macaw territory. News of Blu's arrival spread throughout the forest like a wildfire. Everybody was there to see the impossible happen. Had Blu really come back home, how?

Not a single blue macaw ever went to the badlands territory and came back in one piece. And here was Blu after nearly four months. 

Jewel and Blu were just staring at each other. In disbelief, they had to be dreaming. They had to be! The silence was awkward to Clyde, Julius, and Aberdeen who didn't know who any of these people were.

"B-Blu?" Jewel asked tentatively.

Blu almost didn't hear his own name, "Yeah, I'm back Jewel." Blu said slowly, unsure if his words were correct.

Jewel took a step forward, Blu did too. Then Jewel took another, and Blu did. And then another, and another, and another, and another- until they were running towards each other at full speed. They collided in the middle at the speed of light embracing each other in a hug.

" _Awwwwwww,"_ The crowd let out as they saw the two lovebirds embrace.

"Jewel- I cant believe its you!" Blu almost yelled out.

"I cant either!" Weirdly the two began to laugh at the point, a bit exasperated, a breathless chuckle between the two. Only they would understand and that was perfectly alright.

"Blu, i-I'm just glad you are back home. DON'T DO THAT TO ME EVER AGAIN!" Jewel pointed a angry wingtip at Blu.

"Hey, its not my fault. You try getting lost in a river and finding your way back!"

"Oh please, I am nowhere near that clumsy. Who are they?" Jewel asked after she saw the caravan Blu was travelling with.

Blu turned to look, and there Clyde, Aberdeen, and Julius were standing, "They are good friends of mine. I'd like you to meet Clyde, Aberdeen and Julius." Blu introduced her to them, "And guys, this is my wife Jewel."

"Hello," Jewel said.

"Hi, Jewel." The caravan let out a greeting as Jewel smiled.

"They helped us get back home," Blu said. Jewel at first nodded in understanding but then frowned.

"Us?" Jewel wondered, who else was Blu travelling with. That is until she found _him._

Diante and Jewel met eyes again, he almost awkwardly looked down at the dirt in a shameful way. Jewel remembered why this had all happened again, and why Blu almost died. It was because of Diante, the bird that ruined her life! She was about to approach Diante when Blu's wing stopped her.

"Hey Jewel, He's cool. He changed. I promise."

"How could you say that Blu, he was the one who pushed you into the river in the first place-"

"And a lot has happened since then that you weren't around to see or hear. In fact, he has something to say to you. And I think he means it sincerely, you should listen."

Jewel was still confused as to why Blu was defending this monster of a person but decided that she should just to do as Blu says. The amount of anger she felt burning and welling inside couldn't even begin to describe the feelings she had for Diante. She hated him, to the rotten core. She had to control her breathing to make sure that he wouldn't lash out and attack without her brain's consent.

Jewel walked over to Diante who stood hung his head in shame, something felt different about him. The fact that it seemed like he actually felt something was new. She stopped just in front of him looking down at him (Despite Diante being much taller than she was).

"Well?" She asked almost impatiently.

"I-I don't know how to say this Jewel. You know as well as anybody I'm not the greatest at apologies. So I'll just say it plainly like this. I'm sorry Jewel. I've made some mistakes, and i-I know nothing will ever be good again. I'm just tired of always living like a fugitive. I can't even begin to explain how many times I thought to myself that my life sucks."

The apology wasn't amazing, but Jewel never heard an apology ever come out of Diante's mouth (unless it was in a snarky sarcastic sort of way) so it was all Jewel needed to hear.

"Do you really mean it?" Jewel asked. Diante looked up at her.

"Yeah."

"Apology accepted, Diante. I guess I was wrong about you all along."

"I was wrong about everything, you have Blu to thank about that. I found a girlfriend, great friends, and I found my brother."

That surprised Jewel. She looked at Aberdeen who she assumed Diante was talking about as his girlfriend, but the brother part caught her off guard, "Wait, you have a brother?"

"Yeah, there he is right there." Diante nodded to Blu who smiled and waved his wing.

"Oh, okay."

"wait that's it?"

"Was I meant to act surprised?"

"Well YES! That's my long lost brother!"

"We all knew you were related somehow. I mean you two look exactly the same."

Really? It was that obvious? Saves Diante from having to explain himself. The crowd eventually came down greeting Blu, Diante and their comrades who helped them get back to the forest. A lot of wing-shaking and smiles. A problem soon arose however…

It was known that Diante wasn't exactly the most popular person in the village, if anything he was wanted by village law enforcement. So for now he was taken into a secluded part of the forest to hide until the heat passed over, which was unlikely to happen.

Jewel took Blu back home and instantly he was swarmed by his three kids who hadn't seen their father in almost six months, "DAD! YOUR BACK HOME! I MISSED YOU! WHERE WERE YOU?" was among the things that the three said to him. Of course Blu didn't have the time to answer all of the questions at once, as he was still exhausted and didn't have much to say. His response was, _it's a very long story and I promise I will tell you later._ A disappointing answer but, hey their dad was back. What more could a kid ask?

Clyde, Aberdeen and Julius were also introduced to the tribe and recognized as the people that helped save Blu. And therefore were regarded as heroes to the people. Sadly for Diante he was the one that started this whole mess, so the village hated him still. It would take a miracle for something to happen. A great big miracle.

It was towards high noon, the sun beamed high over the Amazon. Roberto and his gang of sentries were out looking for Diante. Blu was the only one who knew where he had went, and he wasn't going to tell anyone. Diante had two options, run away from home to evade capture, or turn himself in.

After a long day of partying Blu was about to fly out of his nest when he was stopped by jewel, "Blu, where are you going?"

Blu turned around and hesitated to answer. Should he tell the truth? Or was it better if Jewel didn't know? He was going out to look for Diante, but should Jewel know that?

"I-I'm going to go and get something to eat dear. I'll be right back-"

"Where's Diante?" Jewel asked narrowing her eyes.

"I don't know-"

"Blu, please. I haven't seen you in a very long time and it isn't right for you to keep secrets-"

"I don't know Jewel, I swear! Now I'm going to go out to find food. I wont leave you, promise." And with that he flew out into the sky.

 _Yeah right,_ and shortly after Jewel took off following him.

- _Meanwhile in Canada_ -

"If the Toronto Police have been tipped off on our operations, all of us could be busted Evan."

"Yeah I know. I know. Well, they cant if we aren't in Toronto. Those birds are worth more than a million dollars for each feather on their heads! They are flying goldmines for Pete's sake! If we go to Brazil and capture a few of them to bring them back here, we can show the police that we were on a mission to rescue the birds and provide a sanctuary all along."

"But what about the sanctuary where they are being held sir? I mean, wont Tulio-"

"Tulio wont be a problem. Book a flight to Brazil, first class. I want to be there by next week."

"Yes, sir."

Evan knew the police were on to him. He needed to just show them evidence that the corporation was really just trying to provide aid for the birds and they would give him a break. He had no idea where Blu was, but Tulio did. And, that's where they would find out. 

Capture Blu, go on the media saying how they managed to rescue him, payoff the police, and make sure Tulio didn't live to say anything about it. The plan was simple indeed. Almost too simple. But it had to work, his entire empire that he had built would crumble if Tulio and the Police managed to figure out what was going on. His scheme of operations wasn't just in Toronto, it stretched all across the Canadian Shield, along the Canadian west coast in Vancouver, and even in America. 

Branches of the corporation were found all over the world in fact. Chicago, New York, London, Oxford, Brighton, Paris, Madrid, a scandal uncovering what was really going on behind the scenes of this seemingly friendly 'animal rescue association' would be the greatest scandal in Human history! And he would be damned if he was the one to see it all crumble.

He would have to visit Tulio personally…

- _Back in Rio-_

Tulio, Linda, Mauri and their team were hard at work. The signal from the GPS read that Blu was in the macaw colony. And preparations with the media were being made before the grand unveiling. Mauri would send a message to Blu. And if Blu responded, the entire mission, mission impossible, would be complete.

"To think, we got a bird from Buenos Aires to Rio via a GPS and a coding bug from NASA. Isn't that something for fantasy?" Linda said to Tulio while they readied themselves.

"It isn't fantasy, it isn't even Sci-Fi. It is impossible. We talked to a bird via text through a GPS. Last year we would have been looked at as crazy. Now we are called smart. We hacked into a GPS that was miles and miles away. After finding Blu from a video surveillance camera in an electronics store in Buenos Aires. Now if that isn't amazing I don't know what is."

"Maybe we are just characters in someone's imagination."

"Right, some weird 15-year-old is writing a story about us. I wouldn't be surprised. Heck, I'd be expecting it. I bet he wears glasses, and has a big, uncombed, afro. A moustache that has almost grown in and is like six feet tall."

"That's oddly specific." Linda laughed.

"Yeah, but imagine. I don't find it too hard to believe."

"Neither do I, but that description was oddly… _descriptive._ We might be making our readers uncomfortable!"

"Ha! Now I'd like to see that. We aren't even a real story book, just some crappy story on a fanfiction website. About a movie where we aren't even the main character."

An awkward silence followed, it was strange to think about indeed. Was it possible?

"Nah!" Tulio and Linda said together out loud. They left the office room of the Blu Bird Sanctuary, and into the main hall. Mauri was supposed to be making sure that the coding gateway was open for the message to be transmitted, after all GPS' weren't supposed to be able to send or receive text messages. So, thanks NASA! Tulio could also thank Evan for all of this, he was finally bested. And last he heard from Toronto was that the police there were getting suspicious. Dangerously suspicious. Hopefully Evan would get taken down. He had to. He needed to.

Mauri met them halfway in the hall. What used to be a chubby man was a much more slender person, the stress of the situation had changed all of them but it had the most physical impact on Mauri. He had to climb stairs, run down streets with paper work in his hand, walk everywhere, the fat just burned off.

"Mauri, you have good news for us?" Linda asked.

"Well, yes but actually no. You see we are having a little _difficulty_ in keeping the gateway open." Mauri said twiddling his thumbs.

"What do you mean difficulty?"

"Our techs and IT's are saying that the connection required satellite transmission. But the location that Blu is doesn't have a GPS satellite nearby. Basically, as far as the signal is concerned, Blu and his GPS are lost."

"So how have we been able to track him all this time?" Tulio asked.

"Our guys have come up with a lot of explanations and theories. One is that our messages were going through a NASA web system but that NASA has disconnected our server after they found out that Evan is no longer in possession of it. Another is that the coding bug that started all of this to send messages relied on a nearby internet connection, provided by a satellite that projected high bandwidth data. Since no satellite of the sort is anywhere nearby in such a remote region, we cant contact him. The third is-"

"Okay I think we get it."

Mauri was a bit offended, "Okay _wiseass_. Anyway, we cant send messages for whatever reason. And Blu is virtually uncontactable."

"Is his location still available?" Linda asked.

"Well, it is coming up on our screens. But we aren't sure if this is his actual location or if it is just where the satellite last connected to him and hence is where he is showing up. We don't know. Either way it is just outside of the Macaw colony. So give or take a day at the most, he should be there."

"Alright, make sure you know where he is. I'm heading out to the colony myself to find him. Linda, you with me?" Tulio asked.

"Always. Lets go get my bird."

"Now that's what I'm talking about!"


	51. Scandal

_I'm not like them_

 _But I can pretend_

 _The sun is gone_

 _But I have a light_

 _The day is done_

 _But I'm having fun_

 _I think I'm dumb_

 _Or maybe just happy_

 _Think I'm just happy_

 _Maybe I'm happy_

 _Think I'm just happy_

 _My heart is broke_

 _But I have some glue_

 _Lend me a hand_

 _Mend it with you_

 _We'll float around_

 _Hang out on clouds_

 _Then we'll come down_

 _Have a hangover_

 _Have a hangover_

 _Have a hangover_

 _Have a hangover_

 _I think I'm dumb. I think I'm dumb. I think I'm dumb_

 _Or maybe just happy._

 _Think I'm just happy._

 _Maybe I'm happy._

 _Thinking I'm happy._

Diante lay on his back looking up at the roof of the hole in a tree he was in. A lot of feelings were running through him right now. He was happy.

Happy to have found love.

Happy to have gotten home.

Happy to have found his friends and Brother.

He was afraid.

Afraid of Roberto and Eduardo.

Afraid of running away from it all.

Afraid of abandoning his friends and most of all,

Afraid of upsetting Aberdeen.

Her very name put a smile on his face. Aberdeen, such a beautiful name really. A beautiful name for a beautiful girl. A familiar voice came into the room knocking Diante to his senses.

"Hey buddy, you alive?"

Diante looked up to see Blu.

"Sup."

"Your song?"

"Yeah."

"Cool. Cool," Blu walked over to him and sat down next to him, "You know I thought you'd have been across the Spix border by now. Eduardo is after you, you know?"

"I don't feel like running away." Diante said. Blu nudged his shoulder with his wing.

"Hey, I'm right here. You can tell me anything. I'm your bro."

Diante had made a lot of progress as far as his feelings go. From a total lone wolf and isolated loner, to someone ready to cry on a close friend's shoulder if the mood was right. He had said a lot of things he wouldn't have just a few months back. He might even regret some of them. But he was happy to have said them all the same.

"I-I don't want to leave. I don't want to leave you, or Clyde. Or Julius. Or…or Aberdeen. I mean what will she think about me if I run away?"

Blu was silent, then he looked up. And back down. He nudged Diante's shoulder again, "Hey. Don't fret about it. She loves you man. I mean, I see the look in her eyes when she looks at you. Nothing can stop true love man, its like cheese and sprinkles. They just go together, you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, yeah I guess."

"She will be there for you no matter what decision you make. And as your younger brother I'll be proud if you have the balls enough to make the decision to run. Me and Aberdeen, and Clyde and Julius will all be right behind you. In fact, right next to you no matter where you go or what you do. We are family. Family looks after its own."

"That's the first time anyone ever said I was truly in their family."

"Well, there is a first for everything right. Welcome home Diante."

Diante looked at him, "I'm glad to have you as a brother, brother."

"Me too, man. Me too. I mean, you are still a jackass sometimes, but I guess not everyone is perfect right?"

Diante punched him in the shoulder with his good wing, "Shut the hell up, you have problems too you geek." He said whilst laughing.

"At least I don't trip over myself everytime I see Aberdeen," Blu switched to his cutsey voice, " _Oh my god Aberdeen! you are so adorable, baby bird. You just make me fall in love again everytime I see you._ "

"I do not sound like that. At least I don't talk about Star Trek and The Big bang theory you big nerd."

"You know what those two are?"

"How could I not? All you do is yap about Leonard and Sheldon. Yap, yap, yap."

It was Blu's turn to laugh, "You are unbelievable."

"You too."

"The Impossible twins. One is blue, one is green." Blu said.

"I like it. The impossible twins. Wait, are we twins?"

"How old are you?"

"I dunno?"

"Me neither."

"I guess we are if we wanna be?"

"You want to be twins?"

The two thought about it, "Nah!" they both said together.

Then they heard it, the sound of talking outside. It was the voice of a sentry, the two froze solid. Listening on what they were saying.

 _But sir, based off what those three said this guy is a hero._

 _Yeah, a legend sir! He helped carry Blu from a fire. He rescued him!_

 _That man is no hero, or a legend if I ever seen one…_

Roberto appeared around the corner with his two sentries on either side of him.

"Diante."

"Roberto."

Jewel appeared from around the corner too. She had told them, of course she did. She looked down at the ground and hid in the background.

"Wait, you guys cant take him! I vouch for him, he is cool now!" Blu jumped in front of Roberto.

"I'm sorry Blu. Rules are rules. And Diante has broken far too many of them to be forgiven."

Diante stood up and looked as if he was going to tackle Roberto. The two sentries quickly rushed to grab him by the shoulders. Diante stood still as he looked Roberto in the eyes. The two stared at each other for a long while and a sort of silence permeated throughout the room. The only sound was that of the wind rustling outside and the crickets chirping in the bush.

Then Diante lowered his eyes, and held out his wings together. The two sentries placed a ring of leaves around his wings like a makeshift version of handcuffs.

Roberto straightened himself and spoke, "Diante, you are being tried for crimes against Blu, Jewel and the tribe itself. You will answer to Eduardo, and he will decide your fate. _Criminal_."

Diante seemed to have resigned as he let the guards lead him away, but before they did he turned to face Blu with a smile on his face.

"This is what I chose, I'm not running away anywhere."

And then it was just Blu and Jewel in the room.

"I guess you told Roberto?"

Jewel nodded her head.

"Figured. It's alright. He wanted this."

Jewel looked up, "Really?"

"He did. He didn't want to run away anymore. He wanted to finally stand. Stand for his judgment instead of running away from it."

"He really has changed." Jewel whispered.

Blu and Jewel took off into the sky back towards the village.

The two landed in front of the their nest. Clyde, Aberdeen and Julius were there talking with the triplets about what had happened and the adventures of being in the jungle.

"Kids, stop bothering them!" Blu said when he flew over.

"Oh, they aren't a bother really. In fact I thought it was fun-"

"Clyde," Blu interrupted him, "We gotta go now."

"Why, whats the rush?" Aberdeen asked.

"They have Diante. He is being thrown in jail, I guess. I didn't even know this village had a jail. We gotta go get him."

"Wait, Blu, we cant break Diante out of jail." Jewel stopped him.

"I-I know. But I just, I just got to go and at least try and tell the judge that he doesn't deserve to go. I mean, he stood with me during my darkest hour. And I am not going to flake out on him. I-I just gotta try." Blu said as he started bambling to Jewel. She put her arm around him and tried to calm him down.

"Look, we will go and get your brother. Together."

"Me too." Julius said.

"And me!" Said Clyde.

"Make that four. I'm getting Diante." Aberdeen stepped forward as well.

Blu looked around at them all and smiled, "Alright. Let's go and get him."

"The Caravan of Oddballs isn't dead yet!" Clyde cheered out loud, causing Jewel to have a look of confusion on her face.

"Caravan of Oddballs?"

"It's a inside joke. Now c'mon, lets go!"

The caravan hopped onto Clyde's back, Jewel was bit reluctant at first but joined with the rest of them after Blu reassured her that Clyde wouldn't eat her. And then they were off into the forest, Clyde running as fast as he could into the bush.

- _Back in Rio_ -

Mauri was the only one still in the office. The IT's left and he was the man responsible for manning the constant humming and beeping of the computers that kept the whole operation going. He wasn't sure where Tulio was getting all of this money to fund this operation from, and it came down to either the Brazilian government, Charities, or _illegal trading_. And here in Brazil at least, the last certainly was not out of the question.

Well, maybe. It wasn't his job to know either way. He was the head of the computing department of the organization, and his job was to keep an eye on Blu while he was sitting in Rio. The map had been giving him a bunch of weird numbers and patterns and symbols. The map was confused. The wormhole they created through the small coding bug had finally collapsed on itself. No nearby satellite connection, no signal, no messages or data. He had to at least figure out where Blu last went offline, but even that was proving to be difficult as the computer was having a mental breakdown trying to process it all. It was basically dying, he could feel the CPU scream in pain as he pressed numbers and letters into the keyboard.

Or maybe it was just his imagination. Wait no… Mauri was hearing actual yelling outside.

He was a bit scared, after all it was Rio and it wasn't the safest city to be in. But it was too weird, he opened the curtains to one of the windows outside and saw….

Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

 _Bunch of hooligans._ Mauri sighed as he closed the curtains and went back to the computer screens.

 _Knock! Knock! Knock!_ A sound came from the front door. Mauri again stood up and walked over to the door (easier now that he wasn't as _round_ ).

As soon as he unlocked the door it was pulled open, Mauri's head was pushed forward and his vision became dark. He struggled against at least two people capturing him and he tried to scream out loud. No use, a hand over his mouth. He was carried up and thrown into something that felt like a metal surface. He was seated onto a leathery surface. He must be in the back of a utility van or something of the like.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the invisible cunt."

" _invisible cunt?"_ Mauri's voice was muffled by the bag.

"We were trying to look for you for ages, but you covered your trail really good. You were the one who hacked our computers to transport the coding bug from our grasp to yours, right?"

" _Listen, I've got two words for you. If you call that hacking you must be stupid. All I did was move the files from one computer onto a cloud and-"_ A swift blow to the chest gave Mauri the point, " _Okay, okay, I get it."_

"Listen you've got the location of Blu. Now you have two choices. Tell me where it is, or I will go to the Amazon and burn down the whole lot of forest and birds inside. Your choice really."

" _Even if I wanted to tell you I couldn't. Your coding bug had a flaw in it, and that is that Blu cannot send nor receive a message as long as he is out of detection range of a satellite. I don't know where he currently is. He could've been eaten by a predator or something before he even got back home."_

"Lying isn't going to help you here!"

" _Who's lying? If you want you could look at the computer, it's a frozen picture, nothing is coming through. I wouldn't lie-"_ Another hit to the abdomen, the stomach this time, " _Jesus, lay off will you?"_

"Not until you start spitting the facts. Now come on you bugger, we haven't gotten all day!"

" _I'm not lying. Believe me!"_

A long silence as the assailant tried to figure out what to believe. After a few minute in which Mauri was scared he would get hit again (maybe this time to the nose or throat, and that thought scared him more than anything), the assailant didn't hit him but instead cleared his throat.

"Alright, you are taking me there. Right now."

" _What?! Haven't you a damn clue what I just said?"_

"Shut the hell up, or this," Mauri felt something hard against the back of his head, he gulped in fear, "Well. I think this has a crush on you, and if you don't do everything we say I promise you will meet your true love."

" _Alright. Alright, I'll do as you say._ "

"No funny business! Driver, get us to the GPS position!"

The van began moving through the dark streets of Rio at night. Good thing the sanctuary was in a secluded part of town. Nobody would've witnessed what just happened. Good, very good.

-Whoosh, back to Toronto-

Officer Raleigh had figured it out. It all made sense to him and all the other detectives and officers assigned to this case. It was huge, too big to believe. But it had to be, it was the only possible explanation.

"We are talking about major corruption schemes, across the fekkin' board, men. Toronto, Quebec, Vancouver, In America, and especially relating to Dr. Monteiro's case, Brazil." Custer spoke to his commander who rubbed his facial hair in understanding.

"We have traced it all down to the Animal Help Society here in Toronto it is insane how lucrative this one company is. Disguised as a charity, and money 'donated' to the rogue police officers in question labelled as donations but in essence bribe money to make an officer their enforcer or to cover up something that they cant." Raleigh exclaimed.

"Absolutely ridiculous. An Animal charity fund is turning officers rogue to beat up unaffiliated people in the streets. Is that the level of bullshit you are bringing, here to my desk?"

"But sir, it is all here. We even have bank account transactions all of it. Just look-"

"No, Raleigh. I'm cutting this investigation off. Right now, it is a waste of funds and you cant even bring me something that makes any sense at all!"

"But sir you must listen-"

"To what, Raleigh?! To a bloody fairy tail you came up with during a fever dream? You come to my office, and bring this ridiculousness to my table and want to call yourself an officer, eh?"

"What do you mean?" Raleigh asked.

"I mean, hand me your badge."

"WHAT!?"

"Yes, I have said it. You expect to gain a paycheck from this nonsense? Not from me you wont."

Raleigh, furious, took his badge out of his trench coat, and slammed it down on the table. He stormed out of the room the door swinging behind him.

"Sir, if you fire Raleigh, I'm going to have to request a resignation-"

"GO AHEAD, SEE IF I CARE! BOTH OF YOU ARE JUST WORTHLESS PILES OF SHIT, THE WHOLE LOT OF YOU! GO ON!"

Custer had more composure when he laid his badge on the table and he too slowly walked out. He closed the door behind him smooth-like. Leaving the commander there alone. By himself.

 _-The Toronto Sun-_

 _Two ex-police officers release names of those accused in a corruption scandal! Major officials targeted!_

 _-The Toronto Star-_

 _Police detective force back 2 ex-cops as corruption scandal gets out to Parliament_

 _-New York Times-_

 _Toronto corruption scandal revealed by two ex-cops and a detective squad spreads into the United States, as Sen. Justin is accused of links to illegal smuggling._

 _-Wall Street journal-_

 _Canadian Parliament/ US Congress hit hard with the latest in a round of scandals linked to an animal protection agency._

The news came out before the police could even give out Raleigh's final paycheck. He had went straight to the Parliament to testify. And there was nothing stopping it. After the Parliamentarians voted to confide in Raleigh's and Custer's statement they launched an investigation. The American FBI too launched an investigation into its own Congress and police forces. And they traced it all back to Rio. Where Evan currently was.

A team of Canadian, and American police took off from their homelands down into the depths of Brazil, Evan would've been in Rio trying to get to the birds in the rainforest. They had to stop him at all costs.


	52. Redemption

- _This is getting repetitive but, back in the Blue Macaw Tribe-_

 _I didn't know, I didn't know_

 _I didn't know I didn't know_

 _I didn't know what I was missing, now I see a little different_

 _I was…_

 _Playing too much, I got stuck in oblivion-on-on_

 _Oblivion-on-on_

 _Oblivion-on-on_

 _I got, all the time in the world. So, for now I'm just chilling._

 _Because it's a,_

 _it's a beautiful feeling,_

 _in oblivion-on-on._

 _Oblivion-on-on_

 _Oblivion-on-on_

Diante said to himself as he was alone in his cage. He really did have all the time in the world. And he was alright. He just lay on his back inside the cage that Roberto threw him in and sung to himself. Just like he has always done. Maybe Aberdeen would like that one?

"Diante?"

The sound of a familiar voice made Diante perk up. He was thrown into a cell made of wood on the outskirts of the territory while he waited for his trial in front of Eduardo. Hearing a friendly voice, made him less scared.

"I'm right here." Diante said as he stood up. The whole caravan, Jewel included, was there. Right in front of him. It filled his heart with happiness that they would come here for him.

"We heard you, knew it was you as soon as I heard it." Aberdeen said hugging him through the bars of the cage.

"Did you like it?"

"Loved it. Beautiful, just like you."

 _Oh brother,_ everyone thought as the two got all mushy.

"Are you alright? I heard they don't really treat the birds here with care." Said Clyde as walked into view.

"yeah, I'm fine. Thanks."

Nobody else knew what to say. It wasn't like talking right now in this circumstance was the easiest to do, it seemed a lot easier in the movies. But not in real life.

"You know…"Blu started breaking the silence, "I'll fight for you."

"Me too."

"We got your back buddy."

"I wont leave you, ever." Aberdeen said.

"And, me as well. I see you really have changed Diante, and I just have to say that I'm sorry-" Jewel was interrupted by Diante who dismissively shook his head.

"It's alright. I don't think any amount of pleading before the big E will change his mind. Thanks though." He said with a half-hearted smile on his face, "I'll be fine. The village doesn't have a prison so the worst they can do is beat me with a few sticks. I'll just probably get exiled. Which is fine by me."

"Diante, remember. No matter what happens, I'll be there with you. If you get exiled I will follow you wherever."

"Thank you Aberdeen. What about Clyde and Julius?"

"I got this big baby to take care of. Think I'd stay here. We'd keep in touch though." Said Clyde.

"Yeah, we love you, 100." Julius said, standing up and hugging Diante through the bars. It put a smile on his face,

"Y'know, for an idiot you aren't that bad of a person. I love all of you."

"Group hug?"

"Yeah, bring 'em in." Everybody widened their wings (paws for Clyde) and hugged Diante through the cell bars. It was a sweet gentle moment, and everybody cherished each other for the duration of it. They were the Caravan, and nothing would break that.

Just then, a squad of Sentries, Roberto, and Jackson entered the room. They went to Diante's cell area and towards the group.

"Diante, it's time. You have a trial to get on to. Don't want to keep the judge waiting now do we?" Roberto said as he came through.

"C'mon man, please. Let him go. Like I said I forgive him of anything he has ever done-" 

"You fail to understand Blu. This is bigger than you. This isn't the first crime he has committed. We go waay back, me and him." Roberto said with a scowl on his beak.

"Yeah, I remember it all like it was yesterday, Polly."

"Shut up, Diante. You know I hate that name! Come on, get him out of there." The sentries unlocked the cage and led Diante by the wings out of it. They then led him out of the room with Roberto following leaving Jackson behind to watch.

Jewel tugged at his wing, "Please tell me that you can get him out?" She asked.

"I wish I could. I heard Blu's story. He is a legend if you ask me. But Eduardo is a tough nut, he wouldn't give leeway to someone who hurt his daughter the way he has. He cares too much about you Jewel."

"I'm sorry for interrupting but, you are?" Blu asked.

"Oh, I'm Jackson. I was in charge of the search party to find you when you went missing. You must be Blu right?"

"Yeah, thanks for everything you've done while I was gone."

"No problem, and congratulations on getting back home alive-"

"Enough tweeting, we gotta go get Diante. Tally-ho lets go!" Clyde sung as he ran out of the room.

"Clyde you could've at least waited for us!" Aberdeen sighed as she and the rest og the group ran after him.

"No time-" Was all that could be heard from Clyde as he disappeared behind a wall.

As Diante was being led to Eduardo a tired sentry ran to the group.

"Sir, Humans. They've come back with fire, and they are burning everything down!" He yelled out as he caught his breath.

"What?!" Roberto nearly screamed.

"They are burning this whole place down and stuffing us all in cages, we need help!"

"Roberto! I could help, anything to prove I'm a good guy-"

"No, you don't deserve to fly!" Roberto cut Diante off as he chained him to a nearby tree while he was gone.

"But Roberto, listen. The tribe needs help, I know who they are and what they want-"

"Shove it Diante, you've done enough!"

"But-"

A swift blow the stomach told Diante that he had been heard, and that his request was denied. The sentries and Roberto took off into the sky towards the threat. Just before Clyde and everyone else showed up.

"Guys! Come quick!" He called over to them. They all rushed to him as fast as they could to hear what he was saying.

"Look, there are these humans, I guess! They are burning down the forest and everything, we need to stop them!" Diante said panicked.

"Yeah but how?! You are tied to this tree you can't go anywhere!" Blu pointed out.

"Just cut the wire and let's go!" Aberdeen begged.

"But you heard what the bird said, he can't go anywhere! Its illegal!" Clyde said.

"Come on, if we are going to save their home, we need everyone on board. Now cut the wire!" Aberdeen said a bit more furious than before.

Clyde hesitated for a moment, but then extended his claws, "Fine, but Diante, you still owe me a bloody medal!"

"I haven't forgotten buddy!"

A swift hit from Clyde's claws was enough to rip the wire to shreds. Now free, Diante looked at the group, "Alright, we got a village to save!"

While that was happening, the people responsible for the fire were steadily burning it all down. One of the masked assailants took his off, and smiled a crooked smile, Evan was delighted that everything was going as planned, and they took Mauri along just to see. They took the bag off his face a while ago, just o force him to see everything.

"Look guys, burning the rainforest isn't going to get any of you anywhere. You are only pissing off the EPA, they wont like what you've done to the rainforest-" Another hit to the side silenced Mauri.

"The EPA won't know who did it. Besides, I'm not here to burn down the forest. I'm here for the birds. Alright boys, get out the nets!" Evan called to the other smugglers as they nodded and got out rifles that would fire nets at them.

"Guys listen to me! I'm not trying to put a dent in your plans but you've gotta listen! If you continue on with all of this, it wont be long before the government reaches you. And then what're you gonna do? You gotta think about it-"

"Tape his mouth." Evan said.

"What- hey get your dirty paws away from my mouth you Neanderthal!" Mauri struggled with the captor as they put black tape around his mouth.

"Ahh, silence, isn't it beautiful to listen to?" Evan smiled and laughed slightly, "The tale always was, 'if you want something done, better to do it yourself'. And you wanna know something? It's true. For five years Mauri, five years I have been doing this. And You and your bird friends are not going to stop me! I am inevitable!"

Mauri wanted to say something badass in return but couldn't. He could only think in his head, _And I am Mauri_ …

Now that he thought about it, it was probably for the better that he couldn't speak. It sounded a lot cooler in his head than it would if he said it out loud.

He struggled against the grasp of his captors, until he heard a certain noise. The beat of a hundred bird wings through the air. He looked up, and so too did everyone else. A flock of red, blue, green, violet, yellow macaws were all there in the trees. Forcing the men to stop.

Evan was furious that the burning had stopped, "What are you guys doing? Hurry up and burn the thing!"

"But there are birds in the way! We cant-"

"You can, and you will! Now burn this whole thing until it is nothing but ash."

"B-but the animals-"

"Do as I say or I'll do it myself!"

The men looked at each other. One of them put his burner down and began walking in some off direction towards nowhere with tears in his eyes. The others decided no one would find out in the long run. They ignited their burners once again but were stopped again by the sound of multitudes of birds letting out a yell at them.

"Aww man, you guys are screwed now!" Mauri laughed.

"Shut up! It's just a bunch of birds. I wont let a bunch of discount-dinosaurs slow me down! Burn them all-"

The birds all took off and began attacking them. Scratching their soft faces with their talons, fluttering around their heads, and hitting them with stones they picked off from the ground. They too began to hurt Mauri thinking he was one of them, "OW! STOP! I'M THE GOOD GUY, I'M NOT WITH THEM!" he said as the birds assaulted the man. _It was of course bad enough that he was still tied with ropes._

The attack hadn't lasted for long as the men had pulled out their next weapon for just such a threat. The net guns. As each of the guns went off, the nets deployed, and trapped ten or even fifteen macaws under it. Until only a few scattered and injured birds were left.

"Collect them and put them in the cages in the back of the van! We'll sell them all or make some feather hats out of them!" Evan ordered, and the men did as told. Despite the obvious ethical issues, the people were more afraid of Evan. He was going a little mental. And nobody wanted to test this theory, to see if he actually went off the deep end.

So they collected all the nets full of the struggling birds, stuffed them in cages, and tossed them in the back of the van they came with. Evan was still looking for one bird in particular, and it had to be Blu. He needed to get back with Blu, and if he didn't everything would come crashing down. So he personally identified each and every blue bird they captured to see if it was him, but none of them were him.

As time went on and more of the birds were brought to him, he kept getting more and more frustrated. He turned to Mauri in desperation, "Where is he?" He barked at Mauri after removing the tape from his mouth.

"What?"

"Where is he?"

"What?"

" _Jesus-_ Where. Is. He? The bird, the bird, Blu!" 

Mauri still wasn't hearing him clearly, he tentatively asked again, "…What-"

"SAY WHAT ONE MORE TIME! SAY WHAT, ONE MORE GODDAMN TIME! SAY, WHAT!" Mauri said with a gun drawn out.

Mauri, for whatever reason, didn't hear what he said. He didn't want to ask again, as he was scared Evan would actually shoot. But he needed to understand what he said in order to answer the question, "…W-Wh-"

"Don't you dare!"

"W-wwwww-what?"

Evan looked Mauri in the eyes with the gun out, and then just sighed and put it down.

"I said, where is Blu, the macaw?"

Mauri heard this time, "I don't kno-"

The gun whipped back out again, "I swear I don't know!"

"I spent all of that time asking you a basic question, just for an ' _I don't know?'_ "

"Maybe speak up next time?"

"I DID SPEAK UP!"

"Well now you are, before you were just mumbling out letters that didn't make sense, you sound like a motorcycle engine * _brrrrrrrrrr-"_

 __Evan kicked his leg in the shin, making Mauri fall back in his chair in pain _, "_ Ow! My shin!"

"Just tell me what you know. And nobody's shin gets kicked."

"Ok. From what the computer told me before you kidnapped me, Blu's last location is somewhere a few miles south of the macaw colony."

"So we have to venture further into the forest to find the colony, which is likely where he is?"

"Correct."

"Good boy, you come with us, or else I do the other leg!"

"Ok, ok. Let's do it your way!"

The caravan had overheard the conversation between the two, "Who are those people Blu?"

Blu could only guess at who they were, "Mauri and Evan. I've never met the two in real life. Evan is the guy who was chasing us around trying to capture us and Mauri helped guide us back here. It's just a guess, I'm not sure…"

"We gotta do something! They are about to burn down the whole village looking for you!" Clyde said in exasperation.

"I know, but what can we do? I mean, it's not like we can really pick a fight against them, y'know." Said Jewel.

In the heat of the moment, it was Diante who had a plan, "Hey get all the village people together. We are going to need everyone on board. Spread the word throughout the forest. We have to fight them and protect the village!"

"Yeah but how? They have flamethrowers and nets! We just have a couple of sticks and rocks." Blu said.

"We got all the way from Buenos Aires to here and I am not going to let it all be for nothing. We gotta make it worthwhile, besides its not like I even am supposed to be here. Might as well do some good."

Blu nodded his head, "Alright, fine. We do it your way. You lead the way."

"With pleasure."

The caravan quickly dove back into the forest asking around for the dwellers of the village tor retreat all the way back to the Pit of Doom. All animals, birds to beavers, to everything in between made their way there.

Everyone was scared as they knew that at this moment the men were burning their homes down. Nervous chatter between the animals signaled that it would be hard to get everyone's attention, so the caravan did the best they could fashioning bullhorns out of leaves.

"Everyone! Everyone! Calm down! Please, I assure you we have a plan!" Blu called out to the crowd. They hushed and looked to him, waiting to hear their savior speak. He had to have a plan to save them all, from a certain and inevitable doom.

"Diante, tell them…"

Diante stepped forward, but when the crowd saw him they began booing him. They remembered Diante all to well, at least the macaws did.

"He's the murderer!" Shouted one of the macaws in the stand.

"Traitor!" Another.

"Evil-person! Why is he here? He should be in prison for his crimes!" Was among the usual lines of dialogue.

Diante was embarrassed, he hung his head low as the insults kept coming at him from almost every direction. Did he deserve it?

Probably.

But that did little to ease the embarrassment, in fact quite the opposite. They were all attacking him in their time of need when all he wanted was to come out and help them. They were rejecting him once again, all because he made a few stupid mistakes when he was younger.

And then his embarrassment turned to anger. Anger at himself and the audience, he was trying to redeem himself yet the audience wouldn't let him! Anger turned to rage. He snatched the bullhorn from Blu's talons and held it to his beak, almost screaming into it.

"ALL OF YOU SHUT UP!" His voice pierced through the air with the sound of hundreds of birds yelling, and everyone obeyed willingly or not. They all shut their beaks and looked at him.

"Look, I know I'm a bad person! And there isn't anything I can do to change that! If you want to put me in a guillotine and put my head on a pike, go straight on ahead! But I'm trying to help you guys out because I found something much bigger than myself, for once. I found a family. The same people I have betrayed is the same people I realized were there for me this whole time. Blu, I'm sorry, Jewel I'm doubly sorry. And what else can I say other than that? To the entire village; I AM SORRY! Can you hear that? I'm sorry for making mistakes, I'm sorry. But now I want to help you guys out for a change. And if you choose not listen fine. Its fine by me, really it is. But if you want to really save the village, I'd recommend listening up. No matter who it is coming from, it's better than death right?"

Everybody in the audience looked at each other, consulting each other silently. Should they trust him? Should they really trust the same person who's name they chanted out to die just a few days ago? Should they really trust the traitor, the murderer, the fugitive?

Silence, the crowd had made their decision. They had voted to place their trust in him, it was important that Diante came through. Succeed here, and his whole life- the journey from Buenos Aires to Rio to the reservation- would have been for something. To redeem himself and prove to everyone that he was… normal. That he wasn't an outcast. That the fire no longer burned inside of him.

He screws up, and he is a dead bird. 

Diante gulped in anxiety as he delivered a shaky message, "We have to unite against the Humans who are threatening to burn down our whole community. Birds and Mammals alike are going to die if we don't unite! We have to fight back! And give them everything that we've got. We cant let them win! We have to save our homes. So if you'll follow me we can stand up as a unified force against them. To kick them back to wherever they came! Now who is with me?"

Silence again, nobody moved or spoke as they all thought about what he was saying. Some looked unsure, some looked doubtful. Diante winced as he thought he hadn't convinced them.

It was over. He had his chance, and there it went. _Swoosh_ , just like that. It was all gone. He felt a heaviness in his heart as he looked down at the ground in shame. But then a voice from behind him raised his spirits.

"I'm game."

He turned around and it was Blu, wing raised. A smile on his beak.

"Me too." Said Aberdeen raising her wing.

"And me," Jewel did the same.

"Don't forget about us, we are right behind you," Clyde said as he and Julius raised a paw and wing.

And then the audience too, one by one, raised their wings and paws. Until everyone, and absolutely everyone had done so.

A smile grew on Diante's beak, he had done it. He gained their trust once again. Now it was time to prove he deserved it.

Everyone rushed to look around the forest and look for anything they could use to repel the humans. Sticks, stones, anything to break some bones. It was all good. They were angry, upset, happy, scared, and now unified. Blu had experience in leading the last attack against the humans. And he was put in charge of telling everyone what was needed. They would have to try and harass them as much as possible until they gave up and went home, or were too beaten and bruised to continue. The plan was simply to inflict as much damage as possible.

Clyde was once again put to work, he was the fastest, even amongst the speedier birds. He scouted out Evan and his team and brought messages back to Diante and Blu telling them about the situation. On one occasion he had to come back with grave news.

"We've got bad news lads! Evan has brought in more of his goons from who knows where, looks like they have crates, hunting rifles, and a whole bunch of fancy… _stuff_. What do we do?"

"More? Dang I guess we… Umm…" Diante thought to himself.

"We just have to turn up the heat a little bit!" Aberdeen said, she had gotten a pretty heavy stone that if dropped on someone's head could do some considerable damage, "Us ladies got this Diante, you focus on getting everyone prepared and we will be ready." She said before she flew off to rally others.

"I love that woman," Diante said to himself.

"Aww… all mushy now? When we've got a bloody battle to fight in? Come on, we've got a couple of- how should I say- asses to kick!"

"You know Clyde, you are a real cool person half of the time."

"What about the other half?"

"Ehhh, a mix between a complete jerk, dumbass, and other things."

"Well, at least I'm not the one that broke his bloody wing after taking a little dip in a river."

"My-My-My. What great sarcasm you have!"

"All the better to annoy you with my dear!"

Diante laughed, Clyde was one cool cat. Literally.

In a few more minutes it seemed the entire Amazon was ready for war. And so too was Evan and his goons.

Evan had gotten his troop together, their one objective, burn everything, capture any and all blue birds, and make sure that Blu was within their grasp. He wasn't going to stop until every inch of forest was cleared, burned down, and searched.

But then the flame throwers stopped burning and they looked up at the tree line.

"Again? What is up with these bird-" Evan stopped when he saw what lie ahead. It seemed as if every animal was lined up in the remaining sections of the forests. Angry as ever. They all were unified, predator and prey. All of them against Evan.

"How is that even possible?" Evan muttered to himself.

"God almighty! Its Endgame but with a bunch of animals," cried out one of the hunters, "Wait, are we the bad guys?"

"Evan would be Thanos-"

"Shut up the both of you! Now burn them all to the ground!"

The hunters, all numbering fifty to sixty or so, nodded their heads in agreement. But before they did a certain green and red macaw squawked. And then the whole assembly of animals yelled out, roaring, squawking, chirping, whatever they could. It was a battle cry and it could have been heard for miles.

And the animals charged. The Hunters in fear opened fire, the rifles were pulled out and nets drawn. The mammals were the biggest threat as the hunters could've been eaten. Especially the Leopards and Panthers. Gun shots and a few of the animals were hit, but not before long the animals had clashed with the humans. Some humans hit away the swarm of birds with the butts of their files using them like baseball bats, other simply tried to hide sensitive and soft spots of their faces with their arms. 

Blu rode ontop of Clyde's back towards Mauri, Mauri recognized Blu instantly.

"Blu! So you did make it back home! We did it! You got back home!"

The bird simply squawked in excitement as he tried to undo the ropes that constrained Mauri. To no avail, until Clyde brought out his claws and ripped them all in one hit.

" _Why didn't you do that earlier?"_ Blu squawked at Clyde.

" _I'm a cat! We are natural assholes!"_ He meowed back.

With Mauri freed, he got up to commandeer one of the vehicles while the rest of Evans gang was too occupied to notice. He drove off back to find Linda and Tulio to inform them of what had happened. It was all part of Blu's contingency plan, in case this battle didn't really go as planned and they would have to rely on something else. Without regard for speed limits (As if there were any in the middle of the forest) Evan sped off in a Jeep off towards Rio.

The battle was intense, and each animal gave their all. Aberdeen and her flight squadron of birds dropped heavy rocks, coconuts, and other heavy objects ontop of them which definitely hurt. The Humans with no other choice turned to their weapon the flamethrowers and let it all burn.


	53. Victory

The heat and fire of the flames was enough to repel each and every animal. The smoke and heat of the fire choked them, and some were severely burned. Missing feathers and fur. The animals were pushed back as they didn't expect the Humans to use such dire measures.

"Retreat" Diante called out the animals as they were pushed back by waves of fire. But it was too late, the Humans had surrounded them. And the nets came down from upon them.

They were all subsequently captured, with only a few escaping the tragedy. The animals that were captured were rounded up together and stuffed in as many cages that could be afforded. Larger mammals were chained to trees or what so as to prevent them from attacking.

"What in the hell was that? We were almost beaten by a bunch of pathetic animals! How? Go ahead and get out the first aid, search each and every bird here to find Blu! And once you find him, show me." Evan said with a scar on his face from a macaw talon striking his cheek.

It wasn't too long until Blu was discovered, he was picked up and taken away from the rest of the group as he looked on at them with sorrow that he had been captured.

Despite how hard they tried, they failed. While Blu was being captured he caught a glimpse of Jewel as she looked at him with horror.

 _Don't worry, I'll be okay_ , Blu mouthed out. Jewel was on the verge of crying as Blu was handed in a cage to Evan, who smiled crookedly with pleasure. Evan didn't look like the type of man to burn down a forest. He wasn't a bald, buff, purple guy with a golden glove, he was just a skinny normal looking dude. But his smile.

That damn smile.

That's how you knew he was nothing but trouble.

"Good, very good. Blu, I have been looking all over for you. I too know about your little journey from Buenos Aires back here. But I am afraid the journey will have to end here, you are going to Canada with me." Evan said as he took Blu's cage and carried it to the back of a van. The doors of the van shut and Blu was left alone in the cage, in darkness.

 _Mauri has to come through, I know he will_ …Blu thought to himself.

Outside of the van, the rest of the animals that could fit in a cage were stuffed inside of one. Clyde was forcefully pushed into one as he just barely fit inside.

"Y'know, this isn't all that bad. I mean, it could be worse!" Clyde said as his cage was placed next to Diante's. Diante sat inside with a few other macaws and a sugar glider inside. It was very crowded and uncomfortable, almost like a crowded train but worst.

"How could it get any worse than this? Admit it Clyde, I failed."

"Don't say that you lonesome bugger, chin up will you?"

"I did, I tried as best as I could but I couldn't save the tribe." A tear escaped Diante's eye.

"Awww, you poor, poor crybaby. _Wah, I couldn't save the tribe, I'm so sad!_ Have some dignity will ya? We all tried our best and you did what no one else could even think to do. And you know what? It's alright that we lost, because we went with our paws up! And if anything that's the best way to go!"

Diante wiped his eyes dry, "You know what? You're right."

"Of course I am!"

"And we fought the best fight we could!"

"Mmhmm."

Diante's whole attitude towards the affair began to change from Clyde's mini pep talk, "I am pretty great after all, aren't I."

"Ok, sure whateve-"

"I am probably the greatest that ever-"

"I'm gonna have to stop you right there. Don't get ahead of yourself now. We are still stuck in a cage. No reason to get your head all filled over about."

"Sorry."

Clyde, Diante, Jewel and Aberdeen luckily were all put in the same van. Blu was still alone in and in the dark (Quite literally) about everything that was going on outside. It was nerve racking not knowing what was really going on. But Blu tried his best to keep his composure.

He thought about his family, Jewel and his three little ones. He had to stay strong for them, he had to. If he couldn't then he wasn't much of a father, "Ok Blu, calm down. It can't be that bad. It cannot be that bad. I'm in a cage…by myself… in the dark. Could be worst. Could be better, but it certainly could be worst."

Blu sat down and sighed, "Yeah, much better. It could be worst."

"Speak for yourssssself!"

The slithery voice from the darkness called Blu to jump back. In fear of who possessed the voice, his first guess was of course a snake.

"P-please don't k-kill me snake dude?"

"Kill you? Why would I do sssssssuch a thing?" Blu located the owner of the voice. It took him a minute but then he realized.

"Wait a minute, I know you from somewhere."

The snake looked at him, and she too remembered, "Blu?"

"Yeah, it's me! Blu, from the van! The crazy guy who wanted to escape!"

"I can hardly believe it!" Leia the snake, the same snake from the cages in the beginning of the whole ordeal, said in surprise.

"Wait, is it really that crazy bird? You actually made it?" The voice belonged to a hawk, Hank. Everyone that was on that animal shelter transport was now here with him.

"H-how did you guys get here?"

"We followed your advice. We made our break! And we managed to get home, until those Humans captured us. We've been in here for the past few days. Where's your green and red friend that you always used to argue with?" Asked Leia.

"I don't know sadly. He was with me a few minutes ago, but those hunters took us and separated the two of us. I don't know where he is."

"Is this your home?" Hank asked.

"Yeah, I made it! Almost, these guys came and just put me back in a cage…"

"Right where we all sssssstarted."

"Hey, crazy guy. You happen to have any other bright ideas?" Hank asked Blu.

"No…Not really. I sent one of the good humans out to go get some help in Rio, but we could be here for days until he gets back. For now, he is our best option."

"Dang, I was really hoping you would come up with something crazy enough to get us out."

"Not right now…."

However unbeknownst to Blu, there was another. Julius.

He hadn't taken part in the forest's last stand, due in part to Aberdeen and Diante being afraid he would either get hurt or slow everyone down. But he was one of the few who were untouched by it all, and he was the last one remaining.

Diante had told him to stay in one place for a little while until they all came back, but that little while was turning out to be a very long and boring while, and Julius' short attention span couldn't handle the pressure to at least take a peek just to see what was happening. And when he saw what was going on, he was horrified. Birds of all kinds stuffed into cages and thrown into the back of vans and trucks. He saw Clyde (humorously in a cage that was waaay too small) not too far away and decided to try and ask him what had happened.

"Clyde! Clyde! Clyde!" Clyde looked at where the sound was coming from and found Julius there trying to get his attention.

"Julius!? I thought you were in the village waiting for us?" Clyde asked the small crow.

"I was…but I'm here now!"

"Yeah I know."

"So why did you ask if I was in the village?"

"What? W-what, nevermind that now Julius, can you unlock this cage?"

Julius took a hard look at the lock that kept the cage doors shut, "hmmm, yeah. It's a simple bolt that's keeping this thing locked shut. It's easy to undo really." Julius said as he stood there.

"Ok, nice."

Clyde and Julius just stood there again, "Julius, what the hell mate?" Clyde asked rather irritated. 

"What?"

"Open the cage."

"Oh yeah," Julius quickly got to work unlocking the cage door. When he was finished Clyde spilled out of it, stretching his back.

"Took you long enough! My back is killing me!"

"You just asked if I could, and I said yes."

Clyde sighed, _Julius. Is there a bird in the world like him? Hopefully not…_

"Julius, go and free everyone else inside of a cage. You take those guys over there," Clyde pointed to some cages that were off to the right, "And I'll take these over here. Go, go, go!"

Julius immediately got to work helping the other animals free themselves from the metal bars of their cages. As he opened more cages, more animas volunteered to help open other cages and free other animals, which in turn meant there were more animals to help free each other. By the time Julius was done with his sixth cage, there were absolutely no more to be opened. He dragged his feet back to Clyde with his head down low, almost on the verge of crying.

He slightly tugged on Clyde's tail, "Clyde?"

"What? What's the matter, why are you crying?"

"There are no more cages to open… I only got six!" Julius bawled.

 _What in the-_ "Julius, its okay! It's okay! Six is a good number!"

"NO IT ISNT, I SOILED IT! I FAILED!"

 _This really is Aberdeen's problem. Not mine_ , Clyde thought to himself, "Listen, Julius, I'm proud of you either way. Whether you got six or a million. You made me proud, and in the end that all that matters!"

Julius wiped the tears from his eyes as he looked up at Clyde, "Really?"

"Yeah. Really."

It was just then that Aberdeen, Diante and Jewel flew back in to rejoin the duo, "What's going on here?" Aberdeen asked when she touched down.

"It's a long story really, perhaps I'll tell you when this is all over, eh?"

"Sounds good, right now we have a bigger problem to worry about. Does anybody know where Blu is?" Asked Diante.

"Last time I saw him he was being taken by the humans," Said Jewel anxiously, "They put him in a cage and threw him in the back of a van."

"Alright, we gotta go get him." Said Diante.

"Wait, but what about the Humans?" Aberdeen asked, "Once they realized we are all out of the cages they will come back and just stuff us right back in while we are trying to get Blu!"

"Right, we should try and split up. Aberdeen, Julius, Diante. You should try and get everyone together to run back to the villages and regroup. I'll help Jewel find her man." Said Clyde.

"Aye-Aye sir!" Julius saluted as he flew off into some random direction, leaving the others to wonder where he went off to.

"Is he going to be alright?" Jewel asked.

"He'll be fine. _I think_ ," Aberdeen said silently. With that the animals dispersed, Jewel climbed atop of Clyde's back as he ran as fast as he could towards the humans' vans. Diante and Aberdeen rallied together the newely freed animals and told them to regroup back at the Pit of Doom, just as Clyde and Jewel reached the back of one of the vans that they believed Blu was being held in.

"Sooo…Clyde?" Jewel began to ask while they tried to find Blu.

"That's my name!"

"You know Blu?"

"Oh yeah, we met in Buenos Aires. Hundreds of miles away from here. It is a looooooong story, let me tell ya!" Clyde said as he ran.

"I just want to thank you, and everyone else with you, for getting him back home safe." Jewel said.

Clyde smiled, "No problem-erhm- Mrs. Gunderson I suppose?"

"Just call me Jewel."

"Ok, Jewel. And don't worry, I'd do it all again. It was actually quite fun. You know, when we weren't about to die and stuff."

Jewel almost shrieked in terror, "You guys almost died?"

"Well yes… But… Yeah. We almost died many times," Clyde admitted, "In various gruesome ways too. We almost starved to death, died of thirst, died of getting eaten by a puma-"

"Okay-okay I think it." Jewel said. The two reached the back of a van that was parked nearby.

They opened the back doors of the van and were greeted with darkness. The inside of the van was dark and lined with cages of animals on either side.

"Blu…? Blu…?" Jewel called out in the darkness.

"I'm over here!" said a voice from the back of the van. Clyde and Jewel rushed over to it and found Blu inside of a cage, "oh my god, you guys do NOT know how excited I am to see you!" Blu said ecstatically as he saw his wife and friend.

"Us too, come on we are getting you out of here!" Jewel said as she and Clyde unlocked the cage.

"How did you guys get out of those cages? I could've sworn Mauri left to go to Rio and get more help, he couldn't have gotten back so fast!" Asked Blu.

"We got a little help from Julius, sometimes I love him. Sometimes I hate him." Said Clyde. As the cage doors unlocked and Blu was freed they realized that there were other animals in cages.

"We gotta free everyone else too! Come on!" Blu said as he began unlocking Leia, the snakes, cage.

"Woah-woah wait a minute mister. Youa rent letting that predator out!" Jewel said in fear of the snake.

"What do you mean? She's cool. I know her."

"You know the strangest people." Jewel sighed.

"What can I say, I'm not exactly a 'normal bird'. I might have a few screws loose up in here," Blu pointed at his head.

"I'll say if you consider that snake that can kill you, and this cat which preys on birds, as friends!"

"Hey! Uncool." Said Clyde.

"No offense!"

"None taken."

Clyde, Blu, and Jewel (Although reluctantly) unlocked the rest of the cages. When all the animals were freed they left the van to see outside. And they only saw a new problem.

Evan and his gang had came back from wherever they were this whole time. They almost stared at the animals in disbelief.

"How the hell, did they get out?" Evan asked himself.

Evan was about to give the order to capture the animals, when he was interrupted by the sound of whirring in the air. Evan, his crew and all the animals looked up at the sky.

Above the treeline were a squadron of four helicopters. They banked to the left and hovered over the ground. Humans, dressed in a navy blue uniform lowered themselves from the choppers doors and onto the ground. They were the international police force, dispatched to find Evan and his crew, and arrest them all.

"Damn, it's the feds!" Evan shrieked in terror as he tried to run. Sadly for him three black SUV's, with lights and sirens blazing, swooped in to block their route of escape. More uniformed police came out and stopped Evan from running.

"Umm Blu? What do we do?" Jewel asked.

"Just sit back and watch it all happen I guess, Evan is about to get arrested I think." Said Blu, which was a good enough answer for Jewel.

Evan put his hands up, and so too did the rest of his gang, realizing now that they were outnumbered…


	54. Finale

**This is it.**

 **The final chapter of the story that has been going on for far too long I think. After this chapter, all I have left is a prologue, some credits to the people who helped me, and maybe a chapter where I list every single reference inside of the story. nd maybe (maybe), if I'm feeling good, a list of rejected ways the story could've went.**

 **But asides from that, this is the last chapter of the main plot. And so I present to thee, the finale. Enjoy!**

A truck pulled up into the scene, and the doors opened. Mauri stepped outside and took a look. The police were already in the process of apprehending Evan and his gang. They would be going away for a long time.

Two others stepped outside too, Linda and Tulio. Both of them bewildered by the whole scene. Both grateful that Evan would finally be jailed.

"We did it. We saved the jungle," Said Mauri, "My ex-girlfriend was wrong, I really am in the right line of work!"

"Yeah, all of the animals. We saved!" Tulio said as he sighed in relief that the whole affair could now be considered as over.

Linda wasn't engaged in the conversation however, she was off looking for her bird, Blu. He had to have survived all of this. Wouldn't it be just so ironic that after all of this she lost Blu when he finally made it back home? After all of this chaos.

She had to find him. If she didn't, who knows what she'd do.

She went around the forest and called Blu's name in the area, but nothing she said or called out seemed to work, no matter where she went.

After a while Linda sat down on a tree stump to think, Tulio and Mauri approached her but said nothing, both of them with a solidly grim expression on their faces.

"I…I tried so hard to make sure that he got back home safe." Linda said solemnly.

"I know. We all did-" Tulio tried to say but was cut off.

"I let Blu disappear! I wasn't there for him when he needed me!" Linda cried out.

"That's not true. We all had equal part in this! If he really is lost out there somewhere, we all have responsibility to take for it!"

Linda wiped her eyes as Tulio sat down on the stump next to her. Mauri on the other hand looked behind them, and grew a smile.

"Y'know, my mom used to tell me that sometimes the things that you look for the most, are right under your nose the whole time," Said Mauri with a smile.

"What do you mean?" Linda asked.

"Check your six."

Linda turned around and looked. And she saw Blu, standing right there, looking up at her. And Jewel. And the other animals that they saw previously, the orange cat, a green and red macaw, a small crow, a yellow macaw. They all looked up at her.

Diante elbowed Blu, "That's your Human?"

"Yeah."

"She's the one that named you Blu?"

"Yeah…"

"She stupid or something?"

"Shut the hell up, Diante. I'm having a moment, don't kill it." Blu walked from his group and flew ontop of Linda's shoulder.

Linda held out her fist, and Blu returned with his talon. They did their fist bump, and a _Kaboom!_ At the end.

He was safe now. Finally.

The Amazon. Is there a place like it? The most unexplored parts of the known world lie underneath the dense rainforest of its canopy. And probably for the better.

Blu, Jewel and all their children lived happily in this place. All of them resting as a single family inside their peaceful hollow.

Almost like the day it all began.

The big rage throughout the land was the events that happened yesterday. Evan was put in federal prison for bribery, corruption of government officials, and illegal poaching. Amongst other things…

Diante was officially a part of the tribe now, he was an accepted member amongst the rest of the birds. Forgiven for whatever it was he did in the past. He lived inside of it with his soon-to-be wife, Aberdeen. The two were happy together. Both had happy plans of having a family in the near future.

As it stood Clyde and Julius both decided to stay inside of the tribe as well. They had received an official invite to stay from Eduardo himself, and since it was a very long while back to Buenos Aires, Argentina, they decided staying with Aberdeen and the rest of their friends was the best option.

Linda was now head of the newly formed international organization for the Protection of Endangered Wildlife or the OPEW, Tulio was still head of the Blu Bird Sanctuary in Rio. As was his passion. Their son, Fernando was soon about to head off to a university in the United States to study marine biology. As was his passion (He cared little about birds, and more about fish).

The three kids, they were ever so happy to see their father alive, and in one piece. They had been almost too happy when they first saw him back, as was the rest of Blu's family. But they were grateful and ecstatic beyond belief to have their dad back home.

Mauri, he had begun a weight training program to get people in shape. He wasn't a bodybuilder, but he wasn't the fat and overweight person he once was. Mostly the stress from trying to get Blu back home virtually burned off all the fat, but that wasn't what Mauri really cared about anyways.

Blu himself was wiser than he once was, a bit better at not being scared of the jungle and felt a bit more confident about himself. He would never let Roberto hear the end of it. Not a single chance.

Yep it was indeed the Amazon. A cool ninety-degrees Fahrenheit. The sun beaming down on the forest below.

They say that the heat makes people crazy. Blu learned that was indeed, most definitely true. He befriended a group of strangers and entrusted them with his life for over five months, walked from Buenos Aires to Brazil, fought off a gang of humans, became an internet celebrity, helped redeem a friend, found his brother, and found helped his brother find love. All at the same time.

This kind of crazy stuff never happened in Moose Lake. Maybe because the freezing cold made everyone a bit closer to Earth, nothing crazy ever happened over there.

Or maybe, it was just him.

Was he the crazy one?

Blu lifted himself up from his sleeping position, and looked down at Jewel who was sleeping next to him. She was so cute when she was asleep…

he nudged Jewel who barely awakened with half opened eyes,"hey, Jewel!" He whispered.

"Hm?" She hummed.

"Am I crazy?" He asked.

"Insane…"

"You think, maybe I do irrational things sometimes?"

"You do them everyday."

"Really?"

"Sure, like waking me up at this time of the morning."

Blu hadn't realized it, but the sun had just barely peaked over the horizon. The sky was blue, but it was still visibly too early in the morning.

"Oh…"

"Get some sleep, Blu. You need it."

"Yes, dear."

Jewel smiled a bit as her husband lay back down next to her. So too did Blu.

If being crazy gave him this life, Blu must be insane, or something. But he liked it. After everything, he enjoyed it all thoroughly. Maybe pushing Diante into a river was the right option all along. He'd gladly go through it all again, just not anytime soon.

 _-_ _ **Fin-**_


	55. Credits n' Stuff I guess

Insert cool, upbeat rock music here [The raconteurs Salute your salution]

Yeah!

Salute your solution, man, salute your solution!

Anyway, credits. Thank you to the people who have I am so grateful to have favorited this story and followed it; A.D Sargent, CalvinFujii, FilmedIt, FizzWolf, GeneralKen0bi, Jugal the drgnwarrior, Pableroski, TheBlueMacawCz, guest 6494, Birds of Blue Feathers, JesterLOLs, and Taiski

(phew)

Special thanks to: Agent Megan, Rio2lover100, OrangeMacaw World, Jameson The Pheonix Owl, monsterjamvadim and last but certainly not least, Nightfly123

Thank you all for your supportive reviews and ideas, and for sticking with me through this whole journey. You have no idea how much of a difference it has made to keep me motivated to finih this story (Mind you this is a re-write of the original story I wrote over two years ago, which I'll admit was nowhere near my best work, but its thanks to you guys that I was able to publish and finish this story. And from the bottom of my heart, I thank all of you.)

Shoutout to those in my discord server: WhutterButter, James, Stonks, and Mini for your support in the chat (Not like any of you are reading this but if you are, thank you)

And of course, a thank you to viewers like you (*Points at you)! And you! And you! And you! Thanks, so much you are very kind. All 5,000+ of you. Numbers like that tell no lie, and its simply that I have made a story that people wanted to read and I'm happy that I did, honestly. This was a story that was inside of my head for a long while, and I put my mind onto the paper. So once again, thank you very much for everything. And with that I close this part of the chapter…

'Till we meet again in my next crappy story on Fanfiction!'

 _Also music links for previous couple of chapters, so a mod doesn't try to copyright strike me on Fanfiction like a madlad or something;_

 _Beginning song in chapter 51: scandal is, Dumb by Nirvana (edited slightly by me so it fits the mood y'know?)_

 _Beginning song in Chapter 52: Redemption is, Self-Care by Mac-Miller (10/10 song, if you listen all the way at the end you'll see what I mean. Mac should've gotten that Grammy, not Cardi-B. Greatest song listening to of all time, RIP to the legend, Mac Miller)_

If you are a mod reading this. Please don't copyright strike me.

Its not nice.

Digital Riot, finally closing my laptop. Goodbye!


End file.
